Rose Weasley and the Masters of Death
by allyourdreamstothestars
Summary: Seventh years Rose Weasley and Scorpius Malfoy are recruited for an Order of the Phoenix mission inside Hogwarts itself as the Third Wizarding War rages across the world. With Theodore Nott and the Followers poised to take over Wizarding Britain, the magical world must make the choice between secrecy and exposure. The seventh and final book of the Rose Weasley series.
1. The Cobra Informant

**Hi everyone! Thanks so much for reading the final Rose Weasley book! This is the seventh book in a series, so if you're just finding the series now, the first book is called Rose Weasley and the New Order and you can find all the books on my profile. Otherwise, I hope you like the chapter, and reviews are always welcome. Enjoy! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 1

THE COBRA INFORMANT

There was only one light on at the Burrow that night. It was about a month after Rose Weasley's 17th birthday, the fourth week of July which always brought the Ministry of Magic gala. The event had drawn all the parents out of the house, even Rose's grandparents, representing the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office. James was in London, sharing a flat with Fred and Alice, and the rest of the Weasley-Potter residents had been tasked with babysitting Annie Lupin. The two-year-old was currently lying on the ground of the sitting room sketching a hippogriff with Rose's brother Hugo by her side, leaving Rose to read the Prophet in relative peace. She was half-listening to the Doctor Who episode Al and Lily were engrossed in, flipping through the pages, but eventually one headline caught her full attention.

 ** _NOTT WREAKS HAVOC IN BERLIN: 12 DEAD_**

"Have you seen this?" she asked the two Potters, showing them the paper. Al frowned.

"No. So he's gone international, then?"

"Well, he'd already attacked New York," Lily said, but took the paper from Rose anyway. She grimaced. "Though to be fair he didn't flay anyone in New York."

"What did you say?" Hugo asked in alarm. Annie looked troubled by the tones of their voices but returned to her coloring shortly.

"Do they know anything else?" Al asked.

"Doesn't look like it," Rose said, skimming the article. "Almost all the deaths were Muggles, though."

"Maybe someone will know something at your program, Rose," Hugo said. Rose glanced at the Hogwarts letters lying on the kitchen counter, hers having included, along with her Head Girl badge, an invitation to a program for students interested in international law. The invitation was from McGonagall and basically explained that all the students there were the ones working on her and Scorpius's project at their own schools, so Rose knew she had to go. It started in a few days, though, and she was nervous in spite of herself. At least she would finally know what she'd be doing all year.

"Yeah, maybe," she replied. Her phone rang then, and she checked: it was from Lucy. "Hey," she said. "What's up?"

"There's some people I want you to meet, are you busy?" her cousin asked. She was practically shouting, and the background noise was so loud Rose could hardly hear her.

"Where are you?" Rose asked.

"Morgana's, in Diagon Alley, can you make it?"

"I'm babysitting Annie," Rose said.

"Can't Al handle it? I don't know when the next time you could meet them would be."

"I don't know, Lucy, I would, but Leah and Malcolm are babysitting _us_ ," Rose said, eyeing the windows where she knew the Order members were standing guard outside.

"Can't you just Disapparate?"

"If I just disappear my mum will make it a national security thing—"

"Okay, so take one of them with you, they're there to keep you safe, not tell your parents everything," Lucy said. Rose hesitated. "Come on, Rose."

"Fine, I'll try. Where?"

"It's usually that abandoned warehouse down past Wheezes, but it's a music venue on weekends. I'll see you there." Lucy hung up and Rose reached for her coat by the door.

"Where are you going?"

"I don't really know. You won't tell, will you?" she asked.

"No," Lily said, rolling her eyes.

"I won't be long," she said, and taking her phone, walked out the door. Immediately, Leah was there. "Hi, Leah."

"Where're you going?" she asked.

"I have to talk to Lucy. Could you come with me?" Leah looked uncertain. "Come on, you'll still be watching me."

"Just go, Leah, we don't even think he's in the country right now," Malcolm said from a little further away. "I can handle this for a while."

"It won't take long," Rose said. Leah sighed.

"Fine. But I don't like this."

"Thank you!" Rose exclaimed. "We're going to Morgana's? Do you know where that is?"

"Yes, just let me take you, I don't want you getting Splinched," Leah said, and Rose grabbed onto her arm. They Disapparated quickly and appeared in Diagon Alley, where the large building that Rose remembered seeing stand empty across from the joke shop was pulsing with bright lights and loud music. A sign hung over the door, reading MORGANA'S in stenciled black ink. Leah knocked on the door four times with her wand and it swung open. "You're 17, right?"

"Yes," Rose said.

"Good. You wouldn't be able to walk in otherwise. Come on," she said, and led her inside the warehouse, where a girl band called the Red Ghouls were playing and the crowd was so large Rose wasn't entirely sure she'd ever find Lucy. Finally, she found her cousin in the back of the room, talking to two people Rose had never seen before. Lucy ran over to her when they were a few steps away.

"Hey, Rose!" she said, grinning. "Oh, and hi, Leah."

"Hi, Lucy, could you have picked a darker and more dangerous place to meet?" Leah said, sounding as if her patience was already wearing thin.

"I like this band," Lucy said sheepishly. "Er, this is Fabian," she added, looking at one of the people, a young man with red hair almost as bright as Rose's. He smiled at them.

"Fabian Wolpert, lovely to meet you," he said, shaking Rose's hand. "I'm the Muggle branch of the Weasley family tree."

"You're a Muggle?" Rose asked with interest.

"Yeah. Well, third generation Squib, but basically. I'm a secretary at the Prime Minister's office, which is why Lucy called me," he said.

"He's keeping an eye on Parliament for the Union. Seeing if people are starting to suspect, the general climate, anything like that. And he's also a Ministry informant about how the Prime Minister's operating," Lucy said. "We figured you'd want his number to be kept in the loop too when you're at school."

"You're at Hogwarts? Still?" Fabian asked. "I could owl you instead if you like."

"Oh, er, sure, you have an owl?" Rose asked.

"Oh, sure, we're really connected to the world and everything," he said. "My uncle Nigel was the last one of us to go to Hogwarts, so it wasn't that long ago."

"And this is our contact inside the Order of the Cobra," Lucy said, gesturing to the other man. He smiled at them, though was much more reserved than Fabian.

Rose's eyes widened. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah. New development, he came to us after infiltrating. Gotta hand it to him, honestly, even the Aurors hadn't been able to figure it out," Lucy said. "Well, anyway, Michael, meet Rose and Leah."

"Hi," he said. "Michael Howe."

"Lucy, I don't want to ruin your evening but I'm seeing things I don't like. I might be imagining it but I think some people are watching," Leah said nervously. "Besides, it's impossible to tell if this area's secure."

"Do you two mind if we walk down to the Union?" Lucy asked Fabian and Michael. Neither objected, and she nodded. "Right, there's a back door somewhere around here. Come on." They followed Lucy through the crowd until they left the warehouse and were back on the street, the lights on the top floor of the joke shop making Rose nervous. "Do you really think Uncle George is going to tell on you?" Lucy scoffed, noticing her gaze. Rose had to admit she had a point, and the group started walking down the street to the Progressive Union headquarters on the other side of Diagon Alley. Rose's curiosity got the best of her and she fell back to walk next to Michael.

"So you're a full member and everything?" she asked.

"Yes," he said. "I thought it'd probably be more useful to infiltrate the Followers, but I couldn't get away with that. I'd already volunteered with the Union."

"So the Order of the Cobra doesn't mind that?" she asked.

"No. They're actually in favor of exposure. Though they have different end goals in mind," he said grimly. "They want to enslave the Muggles but they would like them to know about their leaders."

"That's twisted," Rose said uncomfortably.

"Oh, you have no idea," Michael said. "They do all sorts of rituals, really ancient stuff. None of it's even remotely covered at Hogwarts. And the scariest part is most of them really do believe in it. It's totally a cult, way more than the Followers seem to be."

"Do they suspect you at all?"

"Sometimes I feel like they must, but… I've learned to be discreet," he said.

"Not discreet enough, apparently," a voice said, and the whole party froze. Out of the shadows of one of the shop fronts walked a man in a cloak, with a signature emerald glove on his right hand. Immediately, Leah had pushed Rose behind her and was raising her wand.

"Brother," Michael said, his voice shaking. "I—"

"Spare me your apologies, this betrayal is unacceptable," the man spat. "The Council of Brothers will be disappointed."

"The Council?" Michael asked, his expression horrified. "No, please…" Rose could see his hand inching towards his wand and braced herself.

The Order member looked down at Michael's wand and shook his head. "I don't think so. _Avada Kedavra_." Fabian jumped as Michael fell roughly to the ground, and Rose couldn't help but look away.

"Leah Shafiq, Auror Department, drop your wand!" Leah shouted, advancing towards him. The man seemed to completely ignore her and dropped the ring on his gloved hand to the ground. It started spinning and a cloud of smoke engulfed him; when it cleared, he was gone. "Let's get to the Union, quickly," Leah said, and levitated Michael's body as Rose, Lucy, and Fabian sprinted to the headquarters. Lucy unlocked the door and turned on the lights quickly to the lobby, where she cleared off a sign-in table covered in volunteer forms and posters and sunk into one of the chairs behind it. Rose heard a door open on the upper level of the building and before long, Bella Pinkstone and Will Thomas were running down the stairs.

"What's going on?" Bella asked, the Union leader looking frazzled in an oversized shirt and slippers.

"Michael's dead," Lucy said, her voice hollow. "A Cobra found him."

"Oh, my god," Bella said. Will looked down and Fabian was leaning against the table, breathing heavily. Rose was experiencing her usual numbness in response to death, something she never really wanted to recognize in herself, and felt it come on even stronger when Leah hurried in and laid Michael on the table. "I'll call the Ministry," Bella said.

"Already done," Leah said quietly. "Sorry, Rose, but I think your mum knows you're out."

"Doesn't matter," Rose said, because of course it didn't, not in this context…

"So that— that was the Killing Curse, yeah?" Fabian asked. Lucy nodded, the silence in the room stifling. "Right. I—I'd heard about it, but… he was just gone. In a second, just—how do you defend yourself from that?"

"You can't, really," Leah said. "You just kind of hope. But honestly that's kind compared to some of the things Nott's doing."

"Seriously, how do you guys not want us to know that could happen?" Fabian asked.

"Preaching to the choir," Bella said quietly.

"I need to take you home, Rose," Leah said.

"Right," she said, walking over to the Auror. "Will this mean I can't go to the program?"

"I think it means you need to even more now," Leah said. "But they don't tell me much." She looked up at the others and said, "Another Auror will be here soon, with someone from St. Mungo's."

"Thank you," Bella said.

"Ready?" Leah asked Rose. Rose nodded, still staring at Michael's body. His eyes, still frozen open in shock, were the last thing she saw before they Disapparated.


	2. The Wolf Project

**Hi everyone! Sorry it took so long, but I had the worst writer's block ever. Anyway, I'm back! I hope you like the chapter and please review. Thanks for reading! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 2

THE WOLF PROJECT

"You're sure you have everything?"

"Yes, Mum," Rose said, rolling her eyes a little. She knew her mother was nervous, but it was a little annoying, especially as the program was only three days. "I'll be fine."

"Okay, well, be careful, and if you feel unsafe, don't hesitate, you can always tell Teddy you want to come home."

"I know," Rose said. "I'll text you when I get there."

"Well… be careful," she said, and hugged her. The doorbell rang and Rose's mother answered it. "That'll be Teddy." Sure enough, Teddy Lupin was standing in front of their door, along with Scorpius.

"Hi, Hermione. Ready to go, Rose?" he asked, and Rose nodded, picking up her bag and waving goodbye to Hugo on the sofa nearby.

"Bye, Mum," she said. "Say bye to Dad for me." Her father had taken to working with the Order of the Phoenix, and by extension the Auror department, more than he had since he quit three years ago. Her mother wasn't particularly happy about this, but Rose was almost glad of it; they hadn't gotten along nearly as well as they used to after she told them about her and Scorpius. The previously mentioned Malfoy was standing behind Teddy quietly, but smiled when Rose closed the door to the Burrow. "Are we Apparating?"

"No, I'm parked down the road. We're driving. McGonagall doesn't want you Apparating by yourself when you're under our protection," Teddy said. Rose couldn't help but roll her eyes, a sentiment Scorpius seemed to agree with. They reached Teddy's car, and as he walked around to the driver's seat Scorpius kissed Rose.

"Hey," he said, smiling. "I missed you."

"Oh, Merlin, stop that," Teddy called out. "Get in, we're going to be late." They both tried to sit in the back but found Annie's car seat taking up significant space. Scorpius looked annoyed as he got into the front passenger seat. "Honestly, I used to babysit you," Teddy grumbled at Rose. "Seeing any of you lot snogging is disturbing."

"Sorry, Teddy," Rose said, her face turning slightly pink as the car pulled away from the Burrow and towards London. The drive went by more quickly than she'd expected, and before long they had entered London and parked Teddy's car in a garage across from a large skyscraper.

"Your program's in there," he said as they crossed the street. "This is an office building but the top few floors are owned by the Department of International Magical Cooperation. The other companies think there's problems with the facilities up there so you shouldn't be bothered. It's soundproof too."

"You're coming with us?" Rose asked.

"No, just dropping you off. The directors of the program are connected to the Order," he explained. They had reached the lobby of the building and after Teddy flashed a badge at the security guard, they were led through a metal detector and to the nearest elevator. The doors opened on the 97th floor to reveal a large room, with floor to ceiling windows overlooking downtown London and modern furniture gathered in clusters of couches and coffee tables. It would have appeared every bit like a regular office building apart from the receptionist, in obvious wizard robes and floating the papers on her desk with her wand nonchalantly. She smiled when the doors opened.

"Department of International Magical Cooperation offices," she said cheerfully. "Are you here for the Youth Magical Leadership Conference?"

"Er, yes," Rose said. Teddy backed up back into the elevator and waved at them, going back down to the ground floor. Rose and Scorpius grabbed their bags again and walked closer to the desk.

"Sign in here," she said. "Names?"

"Rose Weasley," she said. "And Scorpius Malfoy."

The woman looked up at them again sharply and seemed to suppress a giggle. "Oh, right, yes, of course." Scorpius looked sideways at Rose, his expression making it appear as if someone were torturing him. "Right, okay, you can go in through that door there! And take these," she said, handing them lanyards with some kind of logo for the program and a UK flag in the corner.

"Thanks," Rose said, a little more shortly than she'd intended, and Scorpius followed her through the doors mentioned. They entered a room, more plushly decorated and lit by fireplaces and candles. They were clearly back in the Wizarding world. There were about fifteen or so other people there, and as Rose scanned the room she couldn't see anyone she knew before her eyes landed on Maggie Olson. Her old friend was talking to one of the other American activists, Carlos Calderon, and a couple other people Rose didn't know. She motioned to Scorpius and crossed the room, Maggie running up to hug her when she saw them. "Hey! I was hoping you'd be here."

"Same to you," she said, smiling. "Er, you remember Carlos."

"Yeah, hi," Rose said to him, and he smiled at her and Scorpius. Maggie turned to the other two she was talking to, a tall blond boy and a boy with black hair and a small pointed nose.

"These are the Hogwarts people," she said. "Rose and Scorpius."

"I know who you are," the tall boy said, smiling, his accent revealing him to be French. "Alderic Volant. I'm from Beauxbatons."

"My name's Moritz," the other boy said. "From Germany."

"So do any of you know what this is about?" Scorpius asked.

"They haven't told us anything either," Moritz said. "But it must be something about Nott."

"Yeah. We heard about the attack in Berlin," Rose said. Moritz nodded.

"Our Ministry says it was all Muggles," the boy told them. "It's terrible. He isn't attacking anyone who can even defend themselves."

"Just another reason to repeal the Statute," Rose said. Moritz's face twisted as Maggie gave her a pointed look from behind him.

"Not everyone's a Modernist," he muttered. Rose exchanged a surprised glance with Scorpius.

"Oh. I'm… sorry, I just sort of thought everyone here would be for that."

"Why? I don't advocate exposure, that doesn't mean I want them to be killed," he said. "Excuse me, I have to find my sister." He disappeared into the crowd and Rose looked at Maggie for help.

"I tried to warn you, sorry. The Fischers are the ones from Germany and they're pretty against repeal," she said.

"Oh," Rose said. She looked at Alderic and hesitantly asked, "Er… do you…"

"No, I agree with you," he said, smiling again. "Celie, the other French student here, though, doesn't. And I believe one of the Italians. Other than that, you're probably safe."

"Well, at least it's not a popular opinion," Scorpius said, looking almost as dumbstruck as Rose. Whatever this program is, it had nothing to do with politics. At that moment, a large oak door towards the back of the room opened and another young Ministry employee called their attention.

"Welcome to the Artemisia Lufkin International Magical Law Youth Conference. We'll show you your rooms, where you can leave your things, and then you'll be escorted to the seminar room." They followed the woman down a long and rather narrow hallway, where several rooms with four beds each waited for them.

"Who the hell is Artemisia Lufkin?" Scorpius asked.

"Really?" Rose asked, sighing. "The first female Minister for Magic?"

"You know I didn't pay attention in History of Magic," he said. Rose rolled her eyes.

"Well, neither did I, much. She's sort of my mum's hero. Anyway, she established the Department of International Magical Cooperation, so it makes sense."

"Rose," Maggie called to her from a little further down the hall. "We're in here." Rose threw her bag on the bed nearest the door and briefly said hello to the two other girls in their room, Alderic's counterpart Celie and one of the Durmstrang representatives, Anna. Noting that Scorpius was across the hall with Alderic, Carlos, and the Durmstrang boy, Rose joined the flow of students progressing further down the hallway, which turned twice to the right before leading them into a small room, furnished only with a long table like one found in a conference room and a small podium. Rose, Scorpius, Maggie, and Carlos sat down in the closest group of four seats they could find and waited with all the other students as the podium remained empty. Finally, when they were all seated and the noise had died down considerably as they all seemed to be anticipating something, the door opened again. Neville Longbottom, dressed in dark Muggle clothes and carrying several folders. He walked up to the podium and looked out over the group of students.

"All right, welcome all of you. I trust you've all been told that you're participating in a secret project this term." When no one objected, he continued. "I'm Professor Neville Longbottom at Hogwarts here in the U.K. Welcome to the Order of the Phoenix. You're all the head students at your schools this year, correct?" They murmured affirmatively and he said, "You're going to be in charge of your country's part in an international protection operation. For the duration of the war, the Order will be protecting Muggle and Muggleborn families of targeted individuals or Order members by hiding them at the major wizarding schools."

The Italian girl raised her hand and voiced Rose's first thought. "Our school doesn't let Muggles in."

"It will now. We've spent the summer altering the enchantments at all the schools so that any Muggle involved in the operation will be able to enter. They'll have to be with a wizard, though, which is where you all come in. I know many of you have been training as Animagi, which is ideal." Rose looked at Scorpius, who was almost smiling. "If not, you've probably been training in advanced concealment tactics. Either is fine, but the important thing is not to be seen. We have no idea the full scope of the Followers' intelligence operations, so even if you think you're alone when you collect your charges, you must stay hidden or transformed. I have a folder for each of you; it'll tell you what exactly you'll be doing, who'll be helping you, and the confirmed people participating so far. You'll receive instructions throughout the year when new people ask for protection, most likely through your headmaster." Neville started handing out the folders, and smiled at Rose and Scorpius briefly when he gave them their folder. When he was finished, he said, "I'll let you get to the real conference now. And thank you, to all of you." He left the room then, and was replaced by a woman who talked for a very long time about the history of the International Confederation of Wizards. Rose was somewhat interested in the lecture, more than Scorpius was at least, but she was anxious to open the folder, and when they were let out of the room to have dinner she could hardly wait to get to the dining hall before throwing it open.

WOLF PROJECT

"That's us, isn't it?" Scorpius asked from over her shoulder; Rose was startled to notice that it indeed was both of their Animagus forms, same as their Patronuses. She nodded and continued reading.

SUPERVISOR: Professor Minerva McGonagall

LIST OF PERSONS UNDER PROTECTION AS OF 1/9/2023

1\. Mr. Dudley Vernon Dursley and Mrs. Mary Anne Richards Dursley, 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey. Muggles. Cousins of the Potter family, parents of Emma and Collin Dursley.

2\. Dr. Hugo Joseph Granger and Dr. Michelle Rose McKitrick Granger, 57 Queens Rd, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Muggles. Mother and father of Hermione Granger.

3\. Mr. Aaron Michael Matthews, Ms. Jane Elizabeth Carter Matthews, and Chloe Anne Matthews, 451 Jacobs Ct, W Kensington. Muggles. Mother, father and sister of Ava Matthews.

"Wow," she said. "I can't believe someone convinced Mr. Dursley to go to Hogwarts."

"This is really strange," Scorpius said. "I mean, sneaking Muggles into Hogwarts?"

"How many people do you have on your list?" Maggie asked them from across the table. "Because we just have three."

"Seven," Rose said. "But he's mostly operating in the UK right now."

"I guess that makes sense," she said. "What about you, Carlos?"

"Four at Ilvermorny," Carlos said. "I guess it's the same, then, between that and Salem."

"Right," she said. "I should try to get my parents into this. I mean, I'm worried about them being alone in the house… I know I'm not famous or anything like you but I still think they could be in danger as Muggles, you know?"

"I bet if you ask the Salem headmaster, you could," Rose said, concerned for her. If they felt this was necessary, it must be a real concern that Nott will start killing the families of any Order members. Especially as she looked at Ava's family's names on the list, she couldn't help but remember what Lucy had told her. That she and Scorpius were being selfish. Were they? She didn't want to think about it, but the doubt swimming in her mind grew more and more unavoidable and eventually she pushed the food in front of her away and took the folder with her as she stood up. "I'm going back to the room for a while," she mumbled, and left the dining hall, walking down the hallway as purposefully as she could muster. She entered her room, glad to find none of their roommates there, and put the folder down by her bag as she sat down on the bed. She heard footsteps and knowing they would be Scorpius, tried to close the door, but he beat her there and looked at her with concern.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked, and she let him in, not wanting to seem dramatic by shutting the door now. "What happened?"

"I'm putting you in danger," she said quietly. "Lucy told me— I didn't want to believe it, but it's true."

"What are you talking about?" he asked. "That's ridiculous."

"Don't tell me it's ridiculous, you're a Malfoy. You'd be perfectly safe if you'd never met me," she said, slumping back down on the bed. He sat down next to her and to her surprise, didn't seem offended. In fact, she thought she saw him rolling his eyes.

"Rose, I got myself into this as much as you got me into it. I probably would have joined the Order anyway. And the prophecy said three, didn't it? It's not just you, it's not even just you and Al. I'm in this with you, and not just because I love you, even though I do. I'm in this because I believe in it, and because at this point I don't have a choice." She didn't want to look at him, she knew he'd convince her if she did. "And anyway, Orion connected me to you and Al years ago. It was always going to be us."

She couldn't help but agree with that. "Still," she said hesitantly, "you've risked your life for me more than once. It makes me scared for you."

"Well, I'm sorry about that. But I'm not going to stop."

"I know," she said. "I'm never going to forgive myself if you die, though." They sat in silence for a moment. It was the first time in a long time that Rose didn't know what to say to him. Finally, he stood up and held out his hand.

"Come on, let's go back to dinner. Maggie's going to get worried." She took his hand and let him help her up, her head still pounding with doubts. She knew they wouldn't go away, so she tried to suppress them as they walked back to the dining hall, keeping hold of his hand as if she were almost afraid to let go.


	3. September 1

**Hi guys! Thanks so much for reading, another chapter should be coming in the next few days. I hope you like the chapter, and please review! Happy Easter and Happy Passover if you celebrate either! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 3

SEPTEMBER 1

Rose was getting nervous. It was quickly becoming a possibility that she was going to miss the Hogwarts Express in her last year of school, and as Head Girl too. Al was fighting with his father, who was still against his decision to leave Hogwarts. As Rose waited in her upstairs bedroom, their voices floated up the staircase. She heard her uncle exclaim, "I just don't understand why you think this is necessary, Albus!"

"We've been through this, Dad, I'm not going."

"Whatever you think you're proving, it's not more important than finishing school."

"I'll finish school when the war's over!" Al exclaimed. "And besides, you never even finished school, you can't tell me that I have to."

"Of course I can, I'm your father! Just because I did something doesn't mean you need to—"

"Hey." Rose turned; James, home briefly to see off Lily, was standing in her doorway. Her older cousin had changed over the summer; he had taken to wearing more serious clothing and keeping his hair shorter when he became a fully fledged Auror. He was also fighting with his father less—that task had passed on to Al; despite this, James was still James, and his air of reckless abandon was still unappreciated by his parents, this time in the form of their dispute about the motorcycle he'd somehow acquired in the last week and parked outside the Burrow.

"Hey," she replied. "We're going to be late."

"I could drive you," James offered.

"No, my mum would die if she didn't go. It being the last time and all," she said, shaking her head.

"Yeah." James shook his head. "I can't believe you're a seventh year."

"Don't do that, please, it's patronizing," Rose said, rolling her eyes.

"No, it's not! I'm just surprised, it feels like yesterday I watched you get Sorted," he said.

"This is dangerous, Albus! I know you think you're an adult, but you're still young," Harry's voice snapped from downstairs, and she and James listened in silence. Eventually, her cousin stepped inside her room.

"Anyway, be careful, Rosie," he said. "It'll be a big help, what you and Malfoy are doing. I'm going to be your contact for that, so you'll be seeing me some."

"Oh, good," Rose said. James looked around her room, avoiding eye contact. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said quickly. "I just… seriously, be careful, okay?"

"I will," Rose said, oddly touched by his concern. They stood apart for another moment before James stepped closer again.

"Come on, give me a hug." She did, trying not to let this get to her. She'd never hear the end of it if she showed any more emotion than he was stoically refraining from.

"Take care of yourself, James," she said, smiling, and he nodded.

"I should go try to break up Al and my dad," he said. "I'll see you soon."

"See you," Rose said as he walked downstairs. She crossed over to her trunk, mostly full and sitting on her bed. She added a few more things from her dresser and shut the trunk with a satisfying finality. She went over to her desk and shut the cage door on an indignant-looking Musetta. "I know," she said to the bird, "I'm sorry. You'll be back at the Owlery soon…"

"Rose? Are you ready to go? We're just going to take the three of you," her mother said from the doorway, and Rose picked up Musetta's cage and levitated her trunk off the bed.

"Ready," she said. She followed her mum and dad, with Hugo and Lily in tow, down the stairs and quietly past the kitchen, where the three Potter men seemed to have reached an impasse. Al was staring evenly at his father, who looked like he was suppressing a great deal of anger and frustration; James was somewhere between them, looking at his younger brother with an expression Rose was sure was meant to look neutral but that she could see was full of sadness and concern. Al seemed to notice their presence then and went over to Lily first, who practically slammed into him, hugging him tightly. Al played this off but Rose could tell, as with James, he was barely concealing a lot. He quickly said goodbye to Hugo, who looked a little uncomfortable, and then grinned at Rose.

"I suppose I'll see you at Christmas."

"I can't believe you're really not going," she said, trying to be careful not to imply an opinion. He shrugged.

"Yeah, well… I have my own work to do. And you have yours."

"Right," she said. She was suddenly overcome with a wave of anxiety about him. They'd never spent more than a week or two apart, not since they moved into the Burrow when they were both three. "I'll miss you."

Al's face changed a little but he just smiled. "I'll miss you, too, Rose." They hugged, Rose not really wanting to let him go, but their tight timeframe forced her eventually to leave the kitchen and hurry out to the car where the others were waiting. They made it to the train platform with only about five minutes to spare, and Rose's mother quickly said goodbye to Hugo before hugging Rose tightly.

"I'm so proud of you," she whispered. "Be safe."

"I will, Mum," Rose said, starting to feel worn down by everyone around her becoming so emotional. "I'll be fine."

"Bye, Rosie," her dad said, and they hugged too. It was a little more awkward than it had been with her mum, as their relationship had become somewhat strained, but Rose still felt a little sorry when she saw how worried he looked as well. But sorry for what? Being active, doing something for their cause? She wasn't sorry for that, though she supposed she was sorry for the stress it caused her parents. "Good luck."

"Goodbye, Dad," she said, and gave her things to the crewmen. She waved goodbye to her parents one more time before stepping onto the train and following Hugo and Lily through the cars back to the prefect carriage. Practically no one was there yet; she supposed she would have to be the one that looked for the wayward prefects this year. She was still getting used to the idea of being Head Girl. It seemed an enormous responsibility that she wasn't sure she was quite ready for, despite it having been an ambition of hers since the age of nine. Scorpius, however, was there, and she couldn't think of a time she'd been happier to see him. He looked surprised when she practically ran to him and threw her arms around him, though he thankfully didn't really ask why. "I'm really happy to see you.""I can tell," he said. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she said. "You?"

"Yeah, I'm okay. My parents came to the platform but it didn't last long," he said. "But seriously, you sort of look like you might cry."

"I'm okay, really," Rose said, and immediately searched for a distraction. She decided to just kiss him, hoping it wasn't too obvious; it was. He was looking at her questioningly seconds later, and anyway Lily started to cough pointedly.

Rose looked around and saw with embarrassment that a few prefects she didn't know, along with Emma Dursley, had entered the carriage. "Would you mind getting a room?" Lily asked, rolling her eyes. Rose didn't dignify that with a response and instead sunk into one of the benches as the train slowly started to move. Within a few minutes, all the prefects had appeared, so they thankfully didn't have to search for anyone. She stood up along with Scorpius some minutes later, a little nervous. With her she brought the packet she'd been given at the program the month before. It had said that all prefects had been chosen this year to be sympathetic to the project. Looking around the room, Rose could see that certain prefects had indeed been replaced, for the most part with members of the Modernists or the old Army. There were some faces that seemed unfamiliar to her, but trusting the information she'd been given, she started to speak.

"Hello everyone, I'm Rose and this is Scorpius," she said. "I believe you've all been told why you're here, but probably not all the details. As you know, we've all been chosen for a project working with the Order of the Phoenix. We're going to be moving and sheltering Muggle and Muggleborn families of Order members and prominent potential targets of the Followers by using Hogwarts as a hiding place."

"Seriously?" one young Ravenclaw asked. "I thought Muggles couldn't enter the castle."

"The enchantments have been altered," Scorpius said.

"Isn't this the worst time to be weakening the protection charms?" the boy asked.

"That's for McGonagall to decide," Rose said firmly. "Anyway, the fifth years will be taking on more responsibilities to continue the daily Prefect duties, while the sixth years will maintain the shelter, bringing messages, supplies, and anything else needed by the Order to the Room of Requirement where the families will be hidden. Seventh years will receive intelligence and assist in running the entire operation. All of you will report back to me and Scorpius. We'll meet in the Prefect common room weekly or whenever a new arrival is coming, so always be prepared for us to call for you. Understand?" There was no objection, which Rose took to mean approval. "Good. We're still Prefects on top of this, so you can't forget our regular duties. That goes for right now as well, so go patrol the corridors if you like, make sure you meet back here for instructions for tonight. Our first arrivals are coming tomorrow, so we'll need the seventh years to meet in the Prefect commons after classes." The other prefects began to disperse, though Hugo and Lily stayed and sat down on the next bench.

Scorpius, sitting next to Rose and watching the train speed away from London, said, "This year's going to be so strange without Al."

"I know," Rose said. "We might have to make other friends."

He wrinkled his nose. "Ugh. But everyone hates me."

"Oh, they do not," Rose insisted.

"I was joking," he said, though he didn't seem like he didn't mean it. "How is he?"

"Al's okay," Rose said. "He's going to be living with James, I think, and fighting with the Order. Uncle Harry won't take him into the Auror program, though, says he needs NEWTs for that. I don't think I've ever known Al to be as angry with his dad as he is right now. But I mean, he believes in what he's doing so I guess he's happy."

"Do you really think he's going to be okay?" Lily asked hesitantly. Rose paused before nodding.

"Yeah, I do," she said, trying to convince herself as much as Lily. The Hogwarts Express reached the Hogsmeade station just as the sun was setting, and they piled into the carriages quickly, wanting to get into the castle as quickly as possible due to the unnaturally chilly air. Rose, sitting on the hard benches of the carriage, looked around and was startled by the sight of what appeared to be an emaciated, uncomfortably large and discolored horse. "What the hell is that?"

"What?" Hugo asked. "I don't see anything."

"Thestrals," Scorpius said. "I guess you can see them now. They're eerie but they're totally harmless."

"You can see them, then?" Rose asked as the carriage lurched into motion, the thestrals walking forward slowly with a careful and unsettling stride.

"Yes. You can only see them if you've seen death," he told everyone. "I've seen them the whole time, it took me a while to understand that everyone else didn't so I looked it up."

"… I suppose I can see them because of Kingsley," Rose said quietly. "Or the informant that got killed, Michael?" Scorpius nodded.

"Yeah. Probably." Suddenly curious about who Scorpius had seen die, she opened her mouth to ask but was interrupted by a powerful gust of cold wind.

"Why is it so bloody cold?" Hugo exclaimed.

"I don't know, I don't like it," Rose said uneasily. As they rounded the corner to the castle, it was immediately obvious that security had increased. Rose saw at least ten Order members' silhouettes along the edges of the forest and the path up to the Entrance Hall, though they were clearly attempting to remain out of sight. When the carriage dropped them off, they walked into the Great Hall with the feeling of unease still lingering and sat at the Gryffindor table quietly. The usual crowds of questioning eyes followed them through the Hall, and Al's absence was quickly noticed; before long, the Hall had erupted in intense whispering that was only silenced by the Sorting. Rose recognized not a single name of any of the first years, though she did recognize Claire Tyler waiting behind the group for her name to be called. She made eye contact with them and smiled. "I guess she decided to finish at Hogwarts after all," Rose told Scorpius. A little relieved there was someone else experienced in the sort of work they'd be doing, they waited as Claire was Sorted into Hufflepuff and McGonagall approached the podium. "Welcome to our new students, and welcome back to all the rest of our students and staff." The polite round of applause that followed cut off rather quickly, with everyone seemingly anxious to hear what the headmistress would say. "I thank you for returning not only because of the tradition of learning, but because to do so regardless of the circumstances is to display a commitment to persevere in the face of difficulties. I trust you all know that our circumstances this year may seem to you to be more grim and disheartening than ever. I ask you to remember your duty as a student of this school, one of learning and growing in your magical capabilities and one of unity with your fellow students. I hope that this unity with one another and the courage you have shown by returning to school this year will be sufficient to sustain you, and indeed us all, through this difficult time. And now, let the feast begin."

"That was a little dark," Hugo said uncomfortably once the somewhat stunned Great Hall had grown noisy again. "The first years are probably wondering what the hell they got themselves into."

"I thought it was appropriate," Rose said, always feeling a little defensive of the headmistress. "It's not like she's wrong, anyway." When the feast was over, Hugo and Lily led the first years up to the tower and Claire came over to Rose and Scorpius just as they began to stand up from the Gryffindor table.

"Hey. I don't know a single person in my house," she said, laughing a little. "I sort of thought I was going to be in Gryffindor."

"Well, Amanda Finnigan-Thomas is in the Modernists," Rose said. "She should be in your dorm."

"Right. I sat with your cousin Louis at dinner," she said, shrugging. "So you're involved with that project Maggie's doing, right?"

"Yeah, we were actually going to go look at the Room now if you want to come," Rose suggested.

"Okay, sure." Claire followed Rose and Scorpius up the stairs to the third floor and down the dimly lit corridor to the stretch of empty wall space Rose knew would eventually reveal the Room of Requirement. She took a deep breath and began pacing, thinking the exact instructions written in their folder for the Project. _We need a place to hide our family and friends and keep them safe._ After three times, large double doors appeared in the middle of the hall. "Wow," Claire breathed. "Maggie described it but…" Rose pushed open the doors to reveal a large, open room similar to the one they met in for the Army, though this one was equipped with several rows of beds and a long table with several chairs in the middle of the room. Two fireplaces roared on either side, and the familiar passage to the Hog's Head was there as well. There was also a radio on a stand in the corner, and a bathroom off the left side. Rose walked over to the radio and discovered it picked up both the WWN and Muggle stations. She flipped through the frequencies until the WWN news broadcast caught her attention.

"Our main story tonight: Theodore Nott has been spotted in Northern Ireland this evening, accompanied by several of his Followers. This disproves the current leading theory that he is out of the country; the Auror Department has not been reached for comment. Even so, whatever Harry Potter is planning, with Nott most certainly back in the United Kingdom, it begs the question: what will he do next?"

Rose shut off the radio then, not wanting to listen to any theories that would only compound her worries. Nevertheless, after they had shown Claire the way to the Hufflepuff dormitories, they went up to Gryffindor tower even more anxious than before.


	4. The First Assignment

**Hi everyone! Thanks so much for reading, please review! (Also, if you have Freeform, it's Harry Potter Weekend!) Enjoy! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 4

THE FIRST ASSIGNMENT

Rose woke up later than usual that morning, as there was no need to pick up another schedule; she knew it would be the same as the year before, though she was a little concerned about who would be teaching Magical Theory as it clearly was no longer Fogg. After breakfast, she and Scorpius went with Roxanne and Emma to their first class, Potions, and were surprised to find not Professor Marchbanks, but the old man from the Longbottoms' house last year, Slughorn, behind the teacher's desk. Rose searched the room for Dean, looking for an explanation for his aunt's absence, but not finding him they sat down hesitantly at the nearest table. The old man seemed to notice them and waddled over to their table, grinning. "Rose! How wonderful to see you again, you remember me, don't you?"

"Er, of course, Professor Slughorn," she said. "So you're teaching Potions this year?"

"Yes, yes, the headmistress wore me down," he chuckled. Rose remembered a general attitude of wariness toward the old professor and so doubted this, but remained quiet. "Yes, she said it was quite impossible to find someone who could do the job better. And you're Scorpius Malfoy?" he asked, clapping a hand on Scorpius's shoulder rather forcefully.

"Yes, sir," he said politely. Slughorn seemed to notice the other two then.

"And who are you?"

"Roxanne Weasley," Roxanne said.

He squinted. "Er… really?" he asked faintly, and Rose could practically see Roxanne's blood boiling. "Oh. Which Weasley?"

"George," she muttered, and he nodded absentmindedly.

"Lovely. I never had him, but… anyway. And, uh… your mother is…?"

"Angelina Johnson," she said flatly.

"Right, right, yes… I never had her, either, but she was a very accomplished Auror, of course. And you, dear?" he asked Emma.

"Emma Dursley," she said, and his brow furrowed.

"Anyone in the family I would know?"

"I'm… Muggleborn, sir," she said.

"Oh. Well, that's all right, too," he said, and Scorpius put a hand over Rose's, seeming to sense her urge to answer back.

"I'm Harry Potter's cousin, though," she said quickly, and Slughorn's eyes lit up.

"Oh! Of course! You'd be an Evans relation, then, wonderful! Speaking of Potters, where is Albus?" he asked, searching the room eagerly.

"He didn't come this year, sir," Rose said. "He's joined the war effort."

"Oh," Slughorn said, looking put out. "Well… I wish him the best, of course, let him know that, please. Lily is here, though, I suppose?"

"Yes, in fifth year," Rose said. Slughorn nodded, his mind clearly calculating how long he'd have to wait until he had the fifth years.

"Well, I must start the class, but I'd love to continue this conversation another time. I hope you'll consider joining the Slug Club, I'll send invitations out soon, yes…" the old professor hobbled towards the blackboard and began introducing himself to the rest of the unsuspecting class as Emma looked at Rose in alarm.

"Who is that?" she asked.

"He was a professor years ago. He's a bit eccentric," she said apologetically.

"If by eccentric you mean racist," Roxanne muttered, stabbing at her snake fangs with her scalpel indiscriminately. "Honestly."

"What is the Slug Club?" Emma asked.

"It's an exclusive student group Slughorn does," Scorpius said. "He's a climber, he likes to collect promising people. My dad was always bitter he never got in."

"I wonder why he's here," Rose mused. "Nothing happened with Marchbanks, did it?"

"Not sure. But isn't he a Dark magic expert or something?"

"Oh, yeah, they did talk about Horcruxes, didn't they?" Rose replied. "I'll see if I can find out from Dean." They saw Dean in Transfiguration next, but he said his aunt was only told they wanted to explore other options. Rose resolved to ask McGonagall the next chance she got, but as the day progressed for the most part Rose's worries shifted from Slughorn to the assignment they planned to carry out tonight. She only became more nervous as the hours passed by, thinking of what could happen if they failed. She had no idea how difficult it was going to be—what if they were followed? What if she couldn't really transform? She had never tried it—McGonagall thought it was too dangerous to attempt without a good reason. All the headmistress would tell them was that she believed they were ready, whatever that meant. She couldn't fail this assignment—the Dursleys and her grandparents were probably the most at-risk Muggles she could possibly think of. She was so preoccupied that she wasn't even listening to Claire talking during study hall until she heard the word 'statute'. Her head snapped up and she said, "Sorry, what?"

"I knew she wasn't listening," Scorpius told Claire with a smirk.

"Lucy wants you to start writing again," Claire said. "Thinks it's a good way to get people used to the idea of exposure. All you'd have to do is talk about the London resolution in further detail, and convince people it's a good idea should it be necessary. I know it's in the Confederation's hands now, but at least with public opinion on the side of exposure they'll probably be more likely to vote for it if they need to."

"Um, sure," Rose said, "I can do that. Tomorrow, probably."

"Great, thanks," Claire said. "You're starting the project tonight, aren't you?"

"Yes," Rose said.

"Well, good luck. Be careful," she added. "Nott's in the area, you know."

"Yeah, thanks," Rose said, returning to her troubled thoughts. Before long, she and Scorpius were the only students left in the Hall, and as it became closer to curfew Scorpius stood up and said, "Prefect commons?"

"Yeah," she said, nodding, and followed him to the small study on the fourth floor to wait. When it neared midnight, they snuck down the corridor, safe in the knowledge that the other prefects would be keeping everyone in the Houses as instructed, with Devon Goyle and Jared MacMillan waiting at the Room of Requirement to help settle the arrivals. They walked under the cover of Al's Invisibility Cloak until they came to the Entrance Hall, where McGonagall was waiting for them. "Hello, Professor."

"Quickly, put away that Cloak," she said, and Rose stuffed it in her bag as they walked closer to the headmistress. "On the count of three you will imagine yourselves as your animal forms. Ready?" Rose took a deep breath, putting her bag on the ground, and nodded. "One… two… three." As Rose thought of transforming, she began to feel the process taking place, her body shrinking to the ground and elongating. The strangest sensation she had ever experienced, she felt claws and fur grow from within her body and her face become a snout. Before long, she opened her eyes about three or four feet off the ground and looked around to see a tail swishing just out of reach. She looked over at where Scorpius had been and saw another wolf, though his was of a darker pelt than she was. She looked up at McGonagall, who looked almost surprised but pleased. "Very good. Now go. They'll know what to look for." Hearing her speak almost sounded foreign to her, though she still understood her, and Rose felt it difficult to continue thinking in an entirely human way—not impossible, just difficult. She couldn't imagine staying this way for any length of time. McGonagall opened the front doors and along with Scorpius, Rose bounded out into the night, a freeing feeling overtaking her as she ran across the grounds with a speed and strength she had never known before. This was definitely an unparalleled experience, if nothing else. They reached Hogsmeade much more quickly than they would have otherwise, and wasted no time in climbing up the rocky hills to the Shrieking Shack. They ran inside through a hole in the wall and came upon a room full of people—the first she recognized was James, who was standing with Mr. Dursley and a woman Rose presumed to be his wife. Nearby were Rose's mother's parents, talking to a couple with a young daughter Rose guessed were Ava's family. The Dursleys jumped when they entered, but James nodded reassuringly.

"It's all right," he told them. "Rose?" Rose moved forward a little and James grinned. "Right. And Malfoy, I suppose." The wolf that was Scorpius inclined his head, and James said, "This is Rose and Scorpius, they'll take you back to the castle. Through the Hog's Head, guys." Rose nodded at him and she and Scorpius ran out of the Shrieking Shack, waiting at the door for the Muggles to follow them. They bounded down the hill and across the street into the deserted pub, where the bartender started but seemed to have been informed, as she nodded warily at them. The group arrived a few moments later, and Rose led them back behind the bar to the hidden portrait and passageway. Once they had jumped inside and the others followed them, the bartender sealed it shut behind them and Rose and Scorpius imagined returning to human form, the process reversing almost as quickly. They stood up, back to normal, and the Muggles gaped at them.

"Right," she said, "we can get into the castle through here. Follow me." Speaking felt strange, even just after twenty minutes as a wolf, and she realized she was both eager to transform again and wary of it. She could tell it was extremely powerful magic.

"How did you do that?" Mr. Dursley asked them as they walked. "Harry's never done anything like that."

"It's a difficult skill to learn," Rose explained. "It's called Animagus."

"And you can transform into any animal you want?" he asked.

"No," Scorpius said. "Just to whatever your Patronus is."

"What's a—never mind," Mr. Dursley said, shaking his head. "Well, er, it's very impressive. Do we get to see the castle, by any chance? I've always been curious."

"Not through this way, no," Rose said. "Sorry. We might be able to let you see it sometime, if it's not too dangerous."

"Right, okay," Mr. Dursley said, though he looked a little put out. "I was always a little jealous Harry got to go to school in a castle—my school was just a big gray brick building outside London, pretty dreary actually. Though I did meet Mary there, of course." His wife, a small woman with a pointed face similar to Emma's, smiled at him as they continued down the path. When they reached the end of the passage, they opened the door and led the group down the ladder into the room.

"You can have your choice of beds—the bathroom's just there, and the radio tunes to Muggle stations and Wizarding news so you can keep up with what's going on in the war," Rose explained. "Food will be brought by elves three times a day. If there's anything you need we'll be in to check with you regularly—this is Devon and that's Jared, they're also Prefects. There'll be more of us you'll meet, but you can ask any of us for anything. If you have questions they'll answer them, but we've got to get to the Headmistress."

"Thank you," Ava's father told them, and Rose's grandparents both hugged her before they left.

"I suppose we should tell Emma and Collin their parents are here," Rose said.

"I can do it if you want to report to McGonagall," Scorpius offered.

"Sure. I'll see you tomorrow, then," Rose said.

"Yeah. I thought it went great. Didn't it feel amazing?" he asked, sounding exhilarated.

"Er, yes, it was very interesting. I thought it was a little disturbing, though, how… different it felt."

"Well, I loved it. It was like I wasn't even me, you know?"

"Don't you want to be you?" Rose asked, taken aback by this. Scorpius paused.

"…Yeah. Of course. It was just… different. I don't know, I'll see you tomorrow." Rose watched him walk down the hall to Gryffindor, more concerned than ever. She was glad the mission had gone well, of course, but she didn't like this change in him at all.


	5. The Battle of Diagon Alley

**Hi everyone! I'm really sorry this took so long, I've been completely busy with finals and everything, but I'm done with school now so I'll be updating much more frequently. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter and please review! Thanks for reading! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 5

THE BATTLE OF DIAGON ALLEY

 **IN DEFENCE OF THE LONDON RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY THE INTERNATIONAL CONFEDERATION OF WIZARDS DURING THE MAY 2023 SUMMIT**

 ** _(The Daily Prophet neither endorses nor condemns the following)_**

 _Last May, the International Confederation of Wizards voted into law a resolution proposed by Representative McClain of Great Britain and Representative Lopez of the United States. This law, called the London Resolution, allows for the Confederation, in times of serious international conflict, to vote to suspend the International Statute of Secrecy indefinitely. The resolution is so called in memory of the Battle of London on August 1, 1997 during the Second World War, when Lord Voldemort and his followers attacked the Ministry of Magic, taking over the Wizarding government and killing Minister Rufus Scrimgeour. This attack not only undermined the government of the Wizarding world, but that of the Muggle world as well. The Ministry of Magic's Whitehall location made for several encounters that night between Death Eaters and members of Parliament, notably killing a Brighton representative in the street. This type of chaos and ensuing destruction was common during the Wizarding Wars, with the exact total of Muggle casualties unknown but expected to be in the hundreds. These senseless killings could undoubtedly have been prevented by action on the part of the Wizarding world to inform the Muggle population enough to protect themselves. The London Resolution does just that—it allows us to help Muggles help themselves. Who are we to force our non-magical fellow citizens to endure this suffering. To quote Lucy Weasley in her speech to the ICW Assembly in May, "It is a clear injustice to allow magical governments to keep the non-magical populations of their countries in the dark about the grave danger facing them, and to blatantly lie to them about why their friends and family members were killed." There may come a day very soon when our wars among ourselves may prove too dangerous and of too great a scale to remain in the shadows any longer. We ask that if that time comes, you support your representatives who vote to take the risk of exposure for the sake of all of our futures._

 _—An anonymous representative of the international Modernist student organization_

Rose published the essay in the Prophet about a week after Claire had asked for it, and this time attempted to ignore the letters to the editor that followed. She knew that while the essay was technically anonymous, there wasn't a person in the Wizarding world who didn't know it was her writing them by now, and she told herself that personal bias was making the reactions more vitriolic than normal. It was difficult, though, not to see the great amount of emotion that people put into this topic, especially now that she could listen to WWN frequently in the Room with the Muggles they were guarding. There were debates about it nearly every night now on the Lee Jordan news hour, and an entirely new channel popped up titled _Muggles Among Us_ , an almost sadly out-of-touch attempt to expose wizards to Muggle pop culture. She was listening to it one evening after dinner a couple weeks later with Ava's sister Chloe, who liked to laugh at it; the host was talking about MySpace as the pinnacle of modern communication when Scorpius came in looking grim.

"Have you seen the Prophet today?" he asked. He handed it over and Rose's stomach dropped when she saw the headline.

 **MUGGLE CHILD FOUND IN THAMES, DARK MARK ABOVE HIM**

She stood up quickly, not wanting the girl to see, and walked with him over to a corner of the room. "This is getting worse and worse."

"I know," he said quietly. "My dad said it was some old former Death Eater called Rowle. He's bragging about it."

"He's told the Aurors, right?" Rose asked.

Scorpius nodded. "Yeah. They aren't going after him yet, though, not until he tells someone else who could have turned him in. They can't catch on that my dad's—"

"Right," Rose sighed. "This is just awful." She looked back at Chloe and the other Muggles, all of whom were eyeing them curiously. "Do you know when the next people are coming?"

"Not exactly," he said. "But Al's letter this morning said soon." He rolled up the Prophet and put it back in his bag. "Anyway, are you coming tonight?"

"Yeah, just let me get my things," Rose said, hurrying back over to the table with the radio and picking up her own bag. "Sorry, Chloe, I have to go."

"Roxanne said it was going to be serious hexes tonight," Scorpius said. "I think Rudomin's ramping up."

"Where are you going?" Chloe asked.

"Friday night duelling lessons," Rose said. "The Defence Against the Dark Arts professor holds them. Nearly everyone goes, with the war and everything."

"Does that mean Collin's not coming?" she asked, sounding disappointed. She had taking a liking to the younger Dursley, who stopped by frequently to see his parents.

"I don't know," she said, "sorry. I'll be stopping by over the weekend sometime. I'm sure he'll come too." As Rose was leaving, Mr. Dursley hurried over to the two of them, catching them by the door.

"What were you talking about over there? Has something happened?" he asked.

Rose looked to Scorpius, who nodded without indicating emotion. "…A Muggle boy was found dead in London," she said. "They're going after the Follower who did it soon."

Mr. Dursley nodded slowly. "Okay. Thank you. You'll let us know if something happens, right? Or it'll at least be on that WWN channel?"

"We'll try to get news to you as quickly as possible, but sometimes we're going to know things before the news that we can't tell you," Rose said. "I'm sorry."

"That's all right. Er… thank you," he said gruffly. He walked away and Rose and Scorpius were again about to leave the room when _Muggles Among Us_ suddenly stopped and the intro for Lee Jordan's show started playing loudly out of the radio. Rose stopped to listen as the anchor's voice came through the speakers: "This is Lee Jordan with the Wizarding Wireless Network. Breaking news, fighting has broken out at Diagon Alley tonight, with what seems to be the Order of the Phoenix duelling a faction of Theodore Nott's Followers. While Nott himself has not been seen, a number of prominent followers including Antonin Dolohov and Walden Macnair are confirmed to be participating. Several Order members have sustained injuries and the two groups are still currently in conflict. We do not have names of the injured at this time. We are advising all London residents to stay indoors. More information will be provided as this story develops." The news interruption was finished then, and the normal show returned as the Muggles looked at them nervously.

"Did you know about this?" Rose's grandmother asked.

"No," she admitted hesitantly. "We'll let you know what we know as soon as we find out anything." With that, Rose followed Scorpius out of the Room, at a loss.

When they reached the Great Hall, the tables had been pushed back and students were gathered from every House, eager for the first duelling class of the year. Rose, still rather short with a slight figure, weaved her way through the crowd more easily than Scorpius and found Roxanne, Hugo and Lily at the center of the crowd quickly. They were standing at the edge of a large circle that had been marked with tape on the floor of the Hall, where Rudomin stood inside talking with Neville.

"Hey, Rose," Hugo said. "Is Scorpius coming?"

"He's right behind me," she said. "Have you heard about the fighting in Diagon Alley?"

"No," Lily said grimly, "is it the Aurors?"

"It's the Order, so the Aurors will be with them," Rose said.

"So basically everyone we know," Lily muttered, "brilliant."

"I'm sure it will be fine, there's fighting every other day, it's usually not that big of a deal," she assured them. Usually there weren't news break-ins, either, but she didn't say that. The others seemed to be calm when Scorpius finally emerged from the crowd.

"I'm here," he called, finally making it through the crowds of upper year students annoyed by his insistence. "Merlin, Weasley, how did you do that?"

"Anyway, did Scorpius tell you? I heard we get to try stuff they usually only teach in Auror training," Roxanne said, grinning.

"Where'd you hear that?" Rose asked, interested but not wanting to get her hopes up.

"Claire," she said. "She told me she was talking to the Scamanders who said Neville'd been putting together a bunch of different lessons over the summer for these meetings."

"Since when do you know Claire Tyler?" Rose asked. Roxanne blushed.

"Er… Charms class," she said. Hugo shook his head emphatically from behind them and made some inappropriate gestures Rose was sure he would never dare to make in front of their mother. Lily glared at him until he stopped and Rose looked across the circle at the professors, trying to get their attention. If anyone would know what was going on, it would be them. However, not long after Rudomin called everyone to attention. The hall quickly went silent, demonstrating the great amount of interest in the lessons.

"All right. Thank you everyone for coming, though I don't think with this many you'll all be able to try everything," he said, looking around the room sounding impressed.

"Seriously, is the whole school here?" Rose whispered.

"Just about," Lily said. "There was no one in Ravenclaw when I left."

"We're going to start by demonstrating the first hex. This will create a large explosion, and most likely blast targets not directly within the blast area into the wall. The incantation is "expulso"; aim the wand straight at the target and make a sort of jabbing motion. Professor Longbottom will demonstrate." Rudomin quietly summoned a wooden dummy from the side of the Hall and some students groaned.

"Come on, we practice on dummies all the time," Roxanne complained.

"Yes, let's blow someone to bits so we can really see what the spell's like," Lily said, her voice practically dripping with sarcasm.

" _Expulso!_ " Neville called out, and a blast of blue light sped out of his wand and, with a loud noise, blasted the dummy apart, the light making Rose shut her eyes for a moment. Neville quickly repaired the dummy and said, "Volunteers?" Nearly everyone's hand went up, including Rose, who was eager to get a chance to talk to Rudomin. Neville called a third year Hufflepuff forward instead, who produced the blinding light but only knocked the dummy onto the floor. "That was very good, David, this is really advanced. Er, how about a seventh year?" Rose raised her hand even higher and Neville nodded at her. "All right, Rose."

She stepped forward and pulled out her wand as Neville stood the dummy up. She took a deep breath, raised her wand, and called out, " _Expulso!_ " The light was blinding so close to the blast, but Rose held her position firm until the explosion blasted the dummy apart, and Professor Rudomin, standing a little too close, was knocked back a couple feet. She quickly repaired the dummy and helped Rudomin up. "Sorry, Professor."

"No, no, that was very good, I wasn't counting on anyone getting it right yet, I should've stood further away," he said. "Er, Miss Weasley, can I speak with you?"

"I know about the fighting in Diagon Alley, if that's what you mean," she said, uncomfortable at how quiet the room was. Sensing that all eyes were on them, Neville called a Slytherin fifth year forward to try and Rudomin walked out of the Hall, Rose following him.

"How much are you aware of, Rose?" he asked. He looked wary, which was making her more nervous.

"Nothing specific, I just heard the breaking news on the radio a little while ago," Rose said. "What's wrong? Is it Al?"

"No, Al is fine," he said. "It's… well, it's your mother."

"What?" Hugo asked, and Rose turned around quickly to see her brother, having followed them without her noticing. His voice sounded hollow and his hand was gripping his wand more tightly now.

Rudomin looked very uncomfortable. "She sustained critical injuries, they've taken her to St. Mungo's. She's stable but she won't be able to fight again for a while."

"Is…is she okay?" Rose asked.

"I don't know much," he said, "I'm sorry. Professor McGonagall is in her office—"

"I'm going there," Rose said. Her voice sounded flat, the way it got when something bad happened. She knew she was distancing herself and she tried to stop it but it was a reflex now; she felt too numb to really act very upset. All she wanted was to know exactly what was happening, so she walked towards the headmistress's office, ignoring Rudomin's voice she could hear calling after her. She didn't know what he was saying. She only looked back to see if Hugo was following her; he wasn't, that was good. Hugo was more of an emotional person, he'd probably do well getting to blast apart a dummy right now. That was the only coherent thought she had before she knocked on McGonagall's door. The old headmistress answered it, looking at her sadly, which irritated Rose.

"Miss Weasley," she said quietly. "I trust you know, then, about your mother."

"I know she got hurt," she said, with the same tone apparent in her voice, and McGonagall led her to a chair in front of her desk.

"The Healers said she has some serious internal injuries, but they are confident she will be all right. She will likely be in the hospital for a while, but there was no brain damage, so she'll be able to continue her work."

"Can I see her?" She knew it was what she was supposed to say, but in all honesty she couldn't think of anything she was more afraid of. She knew she was likely to cry if she saw her mother unconscious in a hospital bed, and she hadn't cried in front of anyone but Scorpius in a long time.

"Not yet. They said any disturbances could alter their work right now, and she isn't awake anyway." McGonagall studied her face and sighed. "I'm sorry, Miss Weasley. I'll tell you as soon as I know more."

"It's fine," she said hollowly. "Can I go?"

"One moment," she said hesitantly. "I hate to ask this, especially now, but… if there is a Prefect, or ideally Mr. Malfoy, who could stay in the Prefect commons tonight to intercept any potential emergency arrivals? I'm opening the Floo network to that fireplace only."

"I can do it," Rose said quickly. She was struck by a sudden desire to do something, now that she had been reminded there was still a battle. At least then she could do… something.

"Oh, I wouldn't ask for that," McGonagall began, but Rose was shaking her head.

"Really, Professor, I'll be fine. And that way I'll probably hear about my mum faster. I can have someone else come with me, if you want, but I'll be fine."

"…Very well," she said, looking at her with the same sad expression. "That's all, then, Miss Weasley. I'm sorry."

"Thank you," she said quietly, and left the headmistress's office to find Hugo waiting with Scorpius at the bottom of the stairs. Ah, so that's where he'd gone. Scorpius hugged her when she reached them, and she stiffly waited for him to stop; she really didn't think she could moderate her emotions right now.

"Well?" Hugo asked when they moved apart.

"Mum's okay, but she's going to be unconscious for a while. Internal injuries, no brain damage, she's going to be fine as far as they know."

"Oh," he said, breathing out. "Good. Can we—"

"We aren't allowed yet," she said, shaking her head. "McGonagall said she'd let us know."

"Okay," he said, looking down. "Thanks."

"McGonagall wants us to stay in the Prefect commons in case anyone has to come last minute," she told Scorpius, and he nodded, though he was still looking at her like she might explode.

"Are you sure you're okay for that? I can do it alone."

"I'm fine," she insisted, and Hugo's head snapped up.

"Can I come too? I really don't want to go back to my dorm."

"…Sure," Rose sighed. "Let's go." They walked to the Prefect commons quietly, as all three of them clearly didn't know what to say.

It was well past midnight in the commons before Scorpius brought up her mother again, long after Hugo had fallen asleep in the armchair next to the fire. Rose and Scorpius were on the sofa opposite him, curled under a blanket, and Rose had been staring at the fire without speaking for quite some time. "Are you really all right, Rose?" he asked quietly.

"Scorpius, please," she sighed.

"I really think you should talk about it, this thing you do isn't healthy."

"Do you really want to talk about healthy? You've been changing into an animal as often as you please and talking about how wonderful it is to not be you, don't tell me what healthy is."

"This isn't about that," he said, surprised. "I didn't even know it bothered you."

"Of course it bloody bothers me," she said. "Because I love you and you clearly don't."

"I clearly don't love you?" he asked, confused.

"No, you clearly don't love _you_."

"…Oh." After a moment, he said, "We're still talking about your mother."

"Scorpius, if I talk about it I'm going to cry."

"Maybe you should."

"Not in front of Hugo," she whispered.

"Hugo's asleep."

"No I'm not," Hugo mumbled from the armchair, drawing himself further under his blanket. "Do you two never shut up?" At that moment, the fireplace turned green and someone came tumbling out, with two more close behind. Rose, Scorpius, and Hugo all stood up abruptly, and after a second Rose recognized the first as Lucy and the others as Bella and Will from the Union.

"Hi," her cousin said breathlessly, her clothes torn and singed and her wand still out. "Sorry to burst in, but we need to hide. You might want to close the fireplace."


	6. Attack on the Union

**Hi everyone! I figured since I finished the next chapter I should post it now because of how long it's been. Again, I hope you like it, thanks for reading, and please review! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 6

ATTACK ON THE UNION

"I'll get McGonagall," Hugo announced, and raced out of the commons as Lucy turned around to aim her wand at the fireplace and Will helped Bella to her feet. Rose joined her, though not sure what they were protecting against, and glanced back at Scorpius in alarm.

"What's going on?" Rose asked.

"The Union got attacked," Lucy said gravely. "We grabbed as much stuff as we could, but it wasn't much." Rose now noticed all three of them were wearing backpacks stuffed full, and Bella was holding several rolls of parchment to her chest. "We didn't get the volunteer list," she added.

"Do you think they have it?" Scorpius asked. The question was loaded, Rose knew; if they did, it had become a hit list. Bella just shook her head helplessly.

"We don't know," she said. "I hope not, we saw the building catch fire so maybe it got burned."

"The building caught fire? What are you going to do?" Rose asked, aghast.

"We don't know, but we'd like to survive before we ask that question," Bella said.

"McGonagall needs to close the fireplace right now," Will said. "We were being followed; Tom from the Leaky Cauldron let us use his fireplace to come here but we think they might have seen."

"Hugo will be almost there by now," Rose said. "Let's hope McGonagall hears him at the door."

"Do you think he's too shy to knock it down if he has to?" Scorpius asked Rose quietly.

"Hugo?" she asked, raising her eyebrows. "No." She turned back to Lucy and asked, "Do you want to stay at Hogwarts, with the Project?"

"No, we wouldn't impose that on you lot," Lucy said. "We just need to hide here tonight."

They stayed there with their wands trained at the fire, the air too tense to speak, until Hugo burst in, out of breath, and panted, "Floo network's closed." Everyone in the room relaxed, and Lucy dropped down into the armchair behind her. "What happened?" he asked.

"We saw the fighting with the Order and the Followers, so we came running out to help," Lucy said. "After a while, they told us they had it handled and to go before someone recognizes us. I guess someone did, though, because almost as soon as we got back inside there were Followers running down the street towards us. We put a charm on the door to hold them off, packed as much as we could and jumped out the back windows. I can't believe we made it to the Leaky Cauldron, they were firing Killing Curses past us."

"I thought you were supposed to have protection," Scorpius said, frowning.

"They got pulled into the battle earlier on," Bella said.

"McGonagall wants to see you," Hugo said from the doorway, having finally caught his breath.

"I figured," Lucy said, almost laughing, and they all started down the hallway for the headmistress's office. Neville was waiting for them when they arrived, with a cloak pulled over his pajamas.

"Are you all right?" he asked them. "Any injuries?"

"No, we're fine, Neville, thanks," Lucy said.

"Good," he said. "Some tonight aren't so lucky." He turned to the gargoyle and Lucy looked at Rose and Hugo, her face suddenly somber.

"I don't know if anyone's told you…"

"We know about our mum," Rose said quietly, and Lucy just nodded.

"I'm sorry." Rose didn't know why everyone kept apologizing; they didn't curse her mother, after all. It was getting irritating. McGonagall was waiting at her desk, with an owl flying out the window behind her as they entered.

"It's good to see you are all right," she told the Union leaders. "I've sent word to Harry Potter that you've arrived safely." Rose felt a knot in her stomach when she heard that; she knew McGonagall would normally have sent word to her mother's office before Uncle Harry about these things. "You may stay here as long as you need to."

"Thank you, Professor, but we'll go in the morning," Lucy said.

"Where?" Rose asked.

"James said we could go to his flat if we ever needed to…"

"I'm afraid Mr. Potter really can't do that, Miss Weasley; as a high-profile target the Order of the Phoenix isn't comfortable with you staying anywhere without significant security. Besides, James is an Auror, and as a Ministry employee in that capacity…"

"If he harbors us it'll look like an official endorsement," Lucy finished. "Am I close?"

"I'm afraid so. And with a potential vote on the London Resolutions looming, as well as foreign aid hanging in the balance…"

"Right, I understand. Where, then?" Lucy asked. "I mean… we don't really have anywhere else to go, Bella's family is in hiding and Will's Muggleborn."

A knock on the door, or more like pounding, resonated through the office. "Who in Merlin's name…" McGonagall murmured as Neville opened the door. Lucy's father, Rose's uncle Percy, came rushing in, looking positively beside himself. He saw Lucy and grasped her shoulders enthusiastically, sighing in relief. "Thank Merlin. George called me, he saw your building on fire, and he told me this was the emergency location—are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Dad, what does it matter to you?" Lucy said shortly, though her eyes were wide with surprise. Percy stepped away from her a little, looking taken aback.

"Of course it matters to me, you're my daughter."

"You don't well act like it," Lucy muttered.

"I… I'm sorry, Lucy, I … I want to help, how can I help?" Rose looked more closely at her uncle then and saw that he was clearly not having a good year. She hadn't seen him for some time, since fifth year, she realized. He looked more tired than usual, and his normal fastidious grooming had fallen behind somewhat. His hair was also quickly going grey, and he looked at a loss of how to talk to his younger daughter, now staring at him with a mixture of confusion and distrust.

"They need somewhere to stay, Percival," McGonagall said pointedly.

"Oh, er… well, you'll be in the middle of London at our house, that won't be ideal if you're hiding… what about the Paris house?"

Lucy's eyes did brighten a little at that. "Really?"

"Sure, sure, I'm not using it, and it's definitely safe, there hasn't been an attack in France in any of the Wars. There's plenty of room," he added, looking at Bella and Will uncertainly. "Er, who are you?"

"Bella Pinkstone and Will Thomas," Bella said, seeming like she was trying to suppress a smile. "I've, er, heard a lot about you, Mr. Weasley—er, Minister Weasley."

"I can get you keys tomorrow morning," Percy said. "Is that… okay?"

"Yeah, I suppose," Lucy said, looking confused, and he moved as if he was going to hug her but thought better of it.

"Er, I'm glad you're all right," he said. "You should be able to continue your work, too, I believe the Modernist students have a Paris office too?" he said, though sounding uncertain, and looked at Rose questioningly.

"Er, I'm not sure, but I can give you Alderic Volant's contact information," she told Lucy. "He runs their group at Beauxbatons, he'd know."

"Thank you, Rose," Percy said. "I'll send an elf there tomorrow—or not," he said when Lucy, Bella and Will's faces all fell at the suggestion. "Er… all right, then, I'll go. I'll see you in the morning to drop off the keys… yes." With that, Percy turned around and walked back towards the door of the office.

"Percival, if you truly want to help, the Order of the Phoenix is always recruiting," McGonagall called after him. He turned around in the doorway and after hesitation, shook his head.

"I'm not getting involved this time, Minerva, I'm sorry. I'll protect my daughter; that's all. Good night, and thank you." With that, he was gone.

"If you'd like to stay in the Room of Requirement tonight, you're welcome to, or the Prefect commons," McGonagall told them. Lucy looked at Rose hesitantly.

"Aren't Ava's parents in the Room?" Rose nodded. "Prefect commons, then. Thank you, Professor."

"We'll speak in the morning," McGonagall said. "The rest of you may go as well."

"Good night, Professor," Rose said, and followed Lucy and the other Union leaders out of the office.

"Are you going to call her?" Bella asked Lucy as they descended the steps.

"Ava?" she asked, her face twisting as if she'd tasted something unpleasant. "No, why?"

"Why?" Bella asked incredulously. "Well—she's probably hearing rumors about us, not to mention she speaks French and has been looking for a way to leave the country anyway—"

"Hold on, you want her to come with us?" Lucy exclaimed. "That's insane. She doesn't want to see me."

"That's not true and you know it," Bella insisted.

"Fine, _I_ don't want to see _her_ ," Lucy said.

"And there it is," Bella said. "Honestly, Lucy, you're just running away from her when you should be—"

"Should be what? Acting all angsty and star-crossed like them?" she asked, glancing at Rose and Scorpius. "Sorry, you two."

Rose rolled her eyes and Bella sighed. "That's not what I meant…"

"She's safer without me," Lucy said firmly. They had reached the Prefect commons. "I expect we'll see you tomorrow," she said to the three of them. Rose nodded. "All right, then, good night."

"Good night, Lucy," Rose said, not wanting to get her into another argument about love; it seemed like Bella could handle that herself. The Union leaders entered the commons and Rose, Scorpius and Hugo returned to Gryffindor, all three thoroughly exhausted.

Rose woke the next morning to Min shaking her. Despite it being Saturday, the sun was worryingly low in the east and Rose checked her watch on the dresser: 7:00. "Min, what the actual hell?"

"The Minister of Magic wants to see you," she said. "He's in McGonagall's office. I figured it was worth waking you up." Rose was much more awake after this and dressed quickly, hurrying out of the tower and back to the headmistress's office. When she knocked, she was bade come in by McGonagall and indeed found Darius Kendall, looking very tired and dressed in a tailored deep purple old-fashioned Muggle suit, along with Lucy, Bella, Will, and the headmistress.

"Rose Weasley," he said. "It's nice to see you again."

"And you, Minister," Rose said hesitantly. "Though this is unexpected.""I've been meaning to speak with you, and I thought this would be as good as any opportunity as I was here to see your cousin." The Minister walked to McGonagall's desk, where he picked up a copy of the Prophet. "Have you seen any of the opinions voiced by readers after your last publication?"

"I don't read the reviews," Rose said, unsure of why she was making jokes, though Lucy did laugh. Kendall nearly cracked a smile, but passed the paper to her.

"It's a mix, to be sure," Kendall said. "Though everyone seems to be quite emotional. A couple quotes that I thought stood out were 'Pass this resolution now, damn all the purebloods to hell' and 'This blood traitor needs to be silenced'." Rose's stomach turned as she read through the letters. "You must understand why this essay has caused my office a great deal of stress."

"Yes," Rose said, unsure of what he meant by this.

"As much as I hate to say it, we think your essays are only politicizing what should be a neutral security measure. Not publishing any more will help the resolution's chances of passing more than publishing more ever will."

"So your solution is to take their advice and silence the blood traitor?" Lucy asked coldly, her eyes boring into the Minister's angrily.

He sighed and said, "I don't believe we have much of a choice."

"It's all right," Rose said, "I understand." It pained her, but she knew he was right. Lucy looked at her, surprised.

"Are you sure?"

"He's right. Look at this, Lucy," she said, tossing her the paper. "Even the ones on our side sound insane. It's making us look bad."

Lucy was quiet for a short while before she handed the paper back and asked, "So does this mean we can't promote the resolution?"

"You can," Kendall said hesitantly, "but not particularly radically. And try not to connect it to the broader calls for repeal."

"We haven't been," Bella said. "People just see it that way."

"Don't play into this and your ideals will survive," Kendall told them. "I can't promise anything will happen if this radicalization continues."

"Yeah, we know," Lucy said. "They burned down our headquarters last night."

"I know. I'm sorry. You're moving on to a safe location, I trust?"

"Yes," Lucy said. "Speaking of which, I have to find my father. Always a pleasure, Minister," she said, with a hint of sarcasm, and left the office abruptly.

"She's emotional right now," Bella apologized.

"That's all right," Kendall said. "I'm very sorry about this. And Rose, I'm sorry about your mother, we're all hoping for a quick recovery."

"Thank you, Minister," Rose said quietly.

The Minister shook their hands and said, "Well, I should be going, I have to make a statement in an hour about the battle last night. Good luck to all of you," he said, and Disapparated. Rose looked at McGonagall, shocked.

"How did he do that?" she asked.

"The Minister has the same privileges in this castle as I do now in terms of the enchantments," she told them. "It's become necessary so no one sees him meeting with me, what with the secrecy of the project and all. If you have no more questions, you may go."

"Thank you, Professor," Rose said, and Bella and Will echoed her as they left.

"Lucy'll be in the Entrance Hall," Bella said, and Rose nodded as they walked down the stairs. "Sorry about your essays."

"It's okay," Rose said. "I've still got the Modernists. Besides, I have NEWTs this year, it's probably a good thing in a way."

"Thank you for all you're doing," Bella said. "The project you're working on is really admirable. I know Ava's grateful."

"Thanks," Rose said. "Tell her I said hello, by the way; at this rate I doubt I'll see her soon."

"Lucy's really set on this separation thing, but I think it's really affecting her," Bella sighed. "I don't know. The war's changing people."

"I think they usually do," Rose said. They reached the Entrance Hall and found Lucy talking to her father again by the door. "I'll see you around, then, I suppose," she said.

"Thank you, Rose," Will said. Bella said the same and they went to meet Lucy. Rose watched them walk out through the castle doors before returning to Gryffindor Tower, determined to go back to sleep for as long as she could. She was exhausted; at this point, she pretty much always was. She fell back asleep thinking of her mother, and hoping the other girls couldn't hear her cry.


	7. Halloween Night

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading; please review, I love hearing from you! I hope you like the chapter! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 7

HALLOWEEN NIGHT

The weather at Hogwarts had been getting worse since they had arrived, but Rose swore it had never been as bad as it was on Halloween night. McGonagall had put any non-emergent arrivals through the Wolf Project on hold until the weather let up, though that didn't seem like anything that would happen in the near future. Rose had recognized the signs and had asked about the cailleachan, the hags that had caused severe storms during fifth year. The headmistress said that she didn't know, but that it was a possibility; Rose was concerned by that, having been hoping for a negative answer. If the hags were back, it meant Nott was trying to yet again search for the Stone. She had to admit, however, that it certainly seemed as if the hags were here; there weren't any comparable weather patterns anywhere else in the UK. She just hoped that she wasn't going to wake up with one at the foot of her bed again.

On Halloween night, though, the storms were worse than ever. There were warnings to stay indoors both from the professors and throughout Hogsmeade, and even the ghosts were avoiding the outer windows and corridors. Slughorn was having a private feast for the Slug Club that night, something Rose was dreading. She was so curious about the reason he was here, however, that she decided to go anyway. After all, Scorpius, Min, Lily, and Hugo were all going to be there, so there weren't that many people she could talk to in the Great Hall anyway. At the end of Transfiguration that day, just before Rose and Scorpius were about to leave the room, they were called to the front of the room by McGonagall. Walking to her desk, Rose noted that the nervous energy she had noticed the headmistress displayed during class was still evident, in fact possibly heightened. "Yes, Professor?"

"We have new arrivals coming tonight."

"Really, Professor?" Scorpius asked, glancing out the window at the pouring rain and completely overcast sky.

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy. A former Hogwarts student's family will be coming, as well as a Muggleborn Order member who has been recently attacked. Neither can wait another day safely. It must be tonight."

"When?" Rose asked. She knew there was no point in arguing with her; perhaps her wolf form could withstand the storm better. She hoped.

"Midnight tonight. I trust you'll have returned from your club gathering," she said wryly. Rose saw the opportunity to ask and took it.

"Professor, is there any particular reason you hired Professor Slughorn? Is it because he knows about Horcruxes?"

McGonagall looked around the room anxiously and finding all the other students had gone, said, "Something to that effect, Miss Weasley, I assure you, but the specifics are Order business I am not at liberty to discuss with students."

"We're of age," Rose frowned. "And Order members."

"I'm sorry, Miss Weasley," McGonagall sighed. "Good luck tonight to both of you." They were obviously dismissed. Rose walked out of the classroom, put out, with Scorpius trailing behind her.

That night at 8:00, they found the hallway in the dungeons leading past the Slytherin common room and the Potions classrooms to be decorated for Halloween even more so than the rest of the school. The corridor boasted floating jack-o-lanterns and orange and black tapestries depicting dark tales that played out their stories in loops. "A little macabre, even considering the circumstances," Scorpius said uneasily as a skeleton in chain mail impaled another with a sword on the tapestry in front of them.

When they reached Slughorn's office at the end of the hallway, the decorations became more elegant, with dark, heavy drapes framing a long table where Slughorn was sitting. Most of the other guests had already arrived, and Rose counted twenty place settings in all, sixteen of them filled. Rose noticed a few more Slytherins than she would have liked, as well as several others she didn't know. The youngest there as far as Rose could tell was Arya Collins, McGonagall's niece and a third year; everyone else seemed to be older.

"Ah, Rose! Scorpius! Sit down, sit down," the old professor said with somewhat overdramatic enthusiasm. Min, Lily, and Hugo were already there, sitting together, so Rose and Scorpius took their seats next to them.

"Hello, sir," Rose said politely.

"Is your cousin Roxanne coming? Or Miss Dursley?"

"Er, I don't think they could make it, sir," Rose said. She knew perfectly well exactly why they were not there—Roxanne had been avoiding Slughorn since his comment their first day of classes, and Emma as her best friend was also boycotting in solidarity.

"Well, then, I believe we're all here. I trust you know everyone?"

"Er, most," she said, looking across the table quizzically at a pair of Ravenclaws she had never seen before in her life.

"Mia Vance," the girl said. "And this is Jamie Barclay."

Scorpius stiffened. "What?" Rose whispered, but he didn't answer.

"Well, dig in, everyone. Happy Halloween!" Slughorn announced, and food appeared in front of them, a large roasted chicken with a plethora of dressings and sides, and Rose tried to ignore the Slytherins sitting across from them, the likes of Ben Burke and Acantha Carrow, until Slughorn's chatter with them made it too difficult.

"So you're Scorpius's cousin, is that right, Ben?" Slughorn asked.

"Er, yes, Professor," Ben said. "I suppose."

"On your mother's side?"

"Yeah," he said, "my mum was actually supposed to marry Mr. Malfoy but she changed her mind and ran off with my dad. They were all right with it in the end, but my grandparents didn't talk to us for a while."

"The things we do for love," Slughorn said dreamily. "Perhaps it runs in families, eh, Scorpius?"

Scorpius was slowly turning red to her right, unusual for him, and Rose looked at him with concern as he stared angrily across the table at Ben. "Yes, sir," he finally said quietly.

Slughorn laughed. "Don't mistake my joking for disapproval, I think it's wonderful, absolutely astonishing. It's unheard of, really!" Rose tried to smile, awkwardly, as Hugo snickered to her left. When neither of them replied, he changed the subject. "Rose, Hugo, I saw that your mother returned to work yesterday. Be sure to give her my best."

"Thank you sir," Rose said, though she was uncomfortable talking about it in front of some of the club members.

"And, er, what does your father do, remind me?"

"He used to be an Auror, and he still does freelance detective work, but he mostly runs our uncle George's shop with him," Hugo said between inhaling mounds of food.

"Ah, lovely," Slughorn said, though he did sound a little disappointed. "And, er, Scorpius, I heard your father has made a new discovery in one of the tombs in Egypt for his alchemy work, that's very exciting, how much can you tell us?"

"Not much, sir, but he's been travelling a lot lately, so I think it's going well," Scorpius said. Rose knew he hadn't been back to the manor since last Christmas, but from his voice and expression no one would ever guess that. "I have to tell you, though, I don't have much of a taste for alchemy after last year."

"Oh, right, yes, that dreadful business. Well, that's quite all right, we don't all become our fathers," Slughorn laughed. "Mine was an elixir salesman, and a bad one at that-but anyway, Scorpius, what would you like to do after you graduate?"

"I'm going to enter the Auror training program," he said. The table's expressions noticeably changed, and the Ravenclaw girls from earlier started whispering to each other hastily. Slughorn looked surprised.

"Very interesting," he said quietly. "Well, best of luck to you, my boy. Miss Potter, how is your father? I've written him letters lately but I know he must be incredibly busy." The rest of the night droned on, and it felt as if it was taking so long that they would never escape. When they finally were released from Slughorn's musings, it was nearly eleven, and Hugo was practically running out of the room.

"I thought I was going to grow old and die in there, Rose," he said very seriously.

"Well, you definitely wouldn't have died of starvation," Rose said. "Merlin, Hugo, you must've finished three plates."

"I'm still a little hungry, actually," he said. Her brother had been taller than her for an entire year now, and seemed poised to keep growing for some time. He ate like it, too. It was giving Rose anxiety about the passage of time, so she usually avoided thinking about it too much.

"Right," she sighed. "Have you written to Mum, by the way? She says she wants us home for Christmas, and I really want to but I don't know if I'll be allowed with the project. Could you maybe gauge her reaction to a hypothetical situation where I can't go home?"

Hugo rolled his eyes. "Sure, Rose." She noticed over his shoulder that Scorpius had broken away from Min and Lily and was walking down the hallway alone.

"Sorry, I'll see you later," she said quickly, and hurried to catch up to him just as he was rounding the corner in front of the entrance to Slytherin. "Hey."

He sighed. "Hey."

"Are you trying to sneak away from me?" she asked, smiling, but only half joking. He shrugged. "Talk to me. What's going on?"

"…Nothing, it's stupid. Just… Jamie Barclay, her dad was the lawyer at my grandfather's trial." Rose nodded slowly, remembering the tall, thin man that had encouraged him to testify. She remembered that day in the Wizengamot, the gaunt specter of Lucius Malfoy and Scorpius, spilling the secrets of his childhood for the whole courtroom to hear. She knew he was remembering too.

"I remember," she said softly, and he looked down. "Are you going to be okay?"

"I'll be fine," he said. "I mean… it's just brought the memories back up, I thought I'd buried them well enough, but I suppose not."

"I'm so sorry," she said. "About what he did to you, and about the trial… I wish I could help."

"You do help," he said, "just by being here. Honestly."

"Well, I'm not going anywhere."

He finally smiled. "Love you." He kissed her, and she backed up the few inches between where she'd been standing and the wall behind them. She pulled him closer, wanting to help him forget, wanting to forget her own problems, too, her mother and the project and the prophecy and this whole mess of a war. They hadn't had time alone in days, not really alone, and she missed the time when they were always alone, the feeling that it was them against the world, as tiring as it had been back then…

"Ugh, honestly, Malfoy, don't you have any respect?" Startled, Rose's eyes flew open as Scorpius was moving away from her, and she quickly registered that Ben Burke and the other Slytherins from the dinner had appeared, all wearing expressions of disgust. "Blood means something down here, you know, and you're feeling up your blood traitor girlfriend in Salazar Slytherin's dungeons."

"I wasn't—it doesn't matter, we're going," Scorpius muttered.

"Blood traitor," Ben spat, and Scorpius just sighed.

"Say hi to Auntie Daphne for me, I'm sure she loves you, since you still don't have a mind of your own. Come on, Rose," he said, and started walking down the corridor away from them as quickly as possible.

"She's not your aunt anymore, Malfoy! They burned you off the tree years ago, no matter what your father says!" Ben yelled after them as they rushed up the stairs to the ground floor.

Scorpius took a while to calm down, but was fine by the time they needed to transform. In wolf form, Rose burst out into the stormy night and immediately was inundated with torrential downpours and heavy winds. They struggled to maintain a running pace as they made their way to Hogsmeade, her fur soaked through and giving her an unshakeable chill. Rose felt absolutely miserable by the time they reached the Shrieking Shack, where James was waiting with four people, a young man and woman and two older men. Rose blinked and recognized the older men as Dylan, Declan and Amanda's dads, one of them being Dean Thomas the Auror. The young woman behind James had screamed when they ran in, and James was reassuring her now.

"It's all right, it's just Rose and Scorpius," he was telling them. "Remember, these are the students that were meeting you."

"Those are wolves," she hissed, and James turned around and sighed.

"Er, could you change back for a moment? Just to prove you're you," he asked them, and they complied, though this didn't seem to reassure the young woman much. In fact, she looked even more frightened than before.

"Blimey, Rose, that's impressive," Dean Thomas said from the back of the room.

"Hi, Mr. Thomas," Rose said. "Mr. Finnigan. Are you both coming? McGonagall only said one."

"Just me," Mr. Thomas said. "I'm the Muggleborn, after all." His voice sounded tinged with bitterness, despite the smile on his face. "Our house got a Dark Mark spray painted on our door yesterday and _this_ one decided that was it," he said, glancing over at his husband.

"I can't be there all the time," Mr. Finnigan said defensively. "What if something happened to you?"

"I know, Seamus, that's why I'm going," Mr. Thomas said, sighing. "But you're coming to get me if there's a battle." Rose turned back to the young woman, who looked as if she might start hyperventilating.

"It can be a bit shocking, I know," Rose said. "But it's really okay. I'm Rose Weasley."

"Oh," she said, her voice slowly returning to a normal pitch. "Oh, yeah, Aidan's mentioned you."

"Aidan?" Rose asked, and Scorpius's face fell just a little. "You're—"

"Rachel Tanner," she said. "Aidan's sister. This is my brother Michael," she said, pointing to the young man next to her.

"I… yes, he talked about you before," she said. "Is anyone else coming with you?"

"Just us," she said quietly. "Er, our parents are still convinced you're out to kill us. Jen and Brandon don't trust the lot of you either, but Mike and I figured it was worth a shot, with the threats we've gotten."

"Threats?" Rose said.

"Yeah, loads. Apparently Aidan's in some group that's getting some hate or something, I don't know."

"We don't have time for this," James said. "I'm convinced the roof is going to blow off this place."

"Sorry, James, we'll be going," Rose said. "Oh, er, this is Scorpius, by the way, he's the other student in charge of the project."

"Hi," Rachel said awkwardly. "Er, wow, I didn't know you guys could turn into animals. Is that… normal?"

"Not really," Scorpius said. "But we have to move, come on." Mr. Finnigan said a final goodbye to Mr. Thomas and Disapparated, followed by James, and Rose and Scorpius returned to their wolf forms. They led the group out of the Shack, trying to be careful in the storm, but the winds were so terrible they barely made it to the Hog's Head. The passage was especially dark and damp tonight, and Rose was relieved when they reached the portrait opening to the Room. Professor Rudomin was waiting for them inside, and Rose's pulse quickened; he wasn't supposed to be here, something must have happened. Sure enough, he motioned for them as soon as they had changed back to human form, and Mr. Thomas ran right up to them.

"What's going on, Victor? Seamus heard that someone had been captured?" he asked, and the professor hesitated. "I'm a member of the Order, if you can tell them, you can tell me," he said.

"I really can't this time, Dean, I'm sorry. It's not really about the war," he said. "I'll fill you in as much as I can later." Mr. Thomas looked disappointed, but walked away, and the professor led them out of the Room and into the hallway outside. "McGonagall wanted me to tell you as soon as possible. Zephyr Podmore has turned himself in to the Ministry."

"The leader of the Order of the Cobra?" Scorpius asked, shocked.

Rudomin nodded. "Yes. He's deserted, he says. He brought the Resurrection Stone and gave it to the Ministry, it's being kept in the Department of Mysteries now. All he would say is we needed to have it. And there's more." He hesitated before saying, "He wants to speak to you. Both of you, and Al. He says he won't talk until he's spoken with you three, alone. I hate to ask this of you, but…"

It was hardly a choice for Rose. This was a chance to finally understand everything that had happened since first year, the connection, the prophecy… everything. "We'll do it."

Rudomin looked at Scorpius, who looked at Rose before nodding. "Okay, then. Come with me."


	8. The Cobra's Advice

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading, please review, and I hope you enjoy the chapter! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 8

THE COBRA'S ADVICE

"Are you sure you want to do this?" It was the third time they'd been asked the same question by John Taylor, her mother's deputy, who had come to get them from Hogwarts after they'd followed Rudomin to McGonagall's office. "We could get a Veritaserum warrant."

"I want to know what he has to tell us," Rose said firmly, and Scorpius nodded in agreement. They were entering the Ministry lobby now, with most of the lights out considering the hour. A few employees roamed the open area, and while none spoke she could tell they were watching them after they looked away. John led them into the elevator and it stopped on the second level, opening to her mother's department. They followed him down the hallway until they rounded the corner where Rose knew the holding cells were located and found several security guards standing at attention, along with Al and Rose's mother.

"Hey," he said, grinning, "It's been awhile."

"Hi, Al," Rose said, and hugged him quickly before adding, "I thought you'd agree."

"Of course," he said. He and Scorpius exchanged greetings as Rose's mother approached them looking grim.

"He's restrained, and there will be guards outside, but otherwise he's demanded you speak alone. We'll of course wish you to submit your memories of the conversation afterwards."

"Right," Rose said. "Can we have our wands?"

"Yes," she said, "and his has been confiscated; you shouldn't have anything to worry about. Thank you for doing this."

"We're just as curious," Scorpius said, and John approached them then.

"They're cleared to go in, ma'am," he told Rose's mother, and she stepped aside to let them through. Taking a deep breath, Rose walked forward and the security guards opened the door for them as she led the way into the cell. Zephyr Podmore was tall and gaunt, with stringy blond hair and grey eyes that bore a striking resemblance to his daughter Tori. His mouth twisted up into what could be called a smile when he saw them, though he looked utterly exhausted and there was no real joy behind it.

"You came," he said, his voice surprisingly clear. "That's good. Interesting."

"What did you need to talk to us about so badly?" Rose asked.

Podmore's gaze met hers for a moment before it shifted to Scorpius and finally rested on Al. "Meeting you… it's all clear now. It was clouded before."

"What's clear now?" Al asked. "Are you a Seer?" As he spoke, Rose noticed an edge to his voice she'd never heard before, something heavier and more mature. He didn't sound nervous like she'd expected him to, and she knew it must be because of whatever he'd seen in the last two months. The thought unnerved her.

"Of sorts," Podmore said. "Sometimes things become clear to me. Like last night. I realized the Order of the Cobra is wrong. Just like Theodore Nott is wrong."

"In what way?" Rose asked.

"We're part of the problem," he sighed. "You've heard the prophecy, I can see it."

"Yes," she said. She was getting excited, though also worried; they were so close to having answers.

"Nott thinks that you are the false three. He believes he is the one the prophecy speaks of; it's why he keeps Dolohov and Lestrange so close. He wants them to the be the three spoken of. But they are one of the false three."

"One?" Scorpius said, confused.

"I've discovered the truth. Nott and his followers are one of the three to be defeated. The second is my order and the third is the Ministry."

"The Ministry?" Al exclaimed.

"The prophecy states you shall know the power of the Brothers. The ones to be defeated are the ones who would take it away from you. I had no choice but to give the Stone to the Ministry, but they will keep it from you if they can. They want the powers for themselves. So do my brothers, and so does Theodore Nott."

"Okay," Rose said slowly. "We might be able to get the Stone." Scorpius looked at her in alarm; she knew what he was thinking, they had to give the memory to the Ministry, but she knew she could say she was only playing along. "I'm not sure I believe you about the Ministry, but say you're right. We still don't have the Wand. Is it really Nott's now?"

Podmore looked down. "That I cannot see."

"Okay," Al said, "what I don't understand is why you would leave. Don't you want the power yourself too?"

"No," he said, shaking his head. "All the Order of the Cobra has ever wanted is to help prophecy come to pass. We are the guiding force of fate, Albus Potter, and you have refused our help. My brothers have become vengeful, but I want no part in that. You will find your destinies with or without us, but I will not stop you," he finished, addressing all three of them then.

"What _can_ you tell us, then?" Al asked slowly.

"I can tell you that whatever the Order of the Phoenix wants with your connected minds, you would be wise to rid yourselves of this power as quickly as possible," Podmore told them. "Especially now, when you have so many enemies."

"And why is that?" Rose asked, hoping her voice was still steady.

"You've heard the prophecy. It speaks of sacrifice."

"Yes," Rose said, sure now that she sounded scared. He seemed to ignore it, however. Scorpius took her hand, noticing the dread in her voice; she briefly saw his perspective, and felt his anxiety rising just as hers was.

"It is difficult to tell what prophecies truly mean. If this one is… straightforward, however, if one of you were to die, precedent seems to suggest you all would." Rose knew her grip on Scorpius's hand was tightening, but she couldn't help it; she felt as if she might faint. Why hadn't anyone else thought of this? Al looked at her in shock before looking back at Podmore, lost for words. It was Scorpius who finally spoke.

"What are we supposed to do? The connection has saved us more than once," he said.

"Reality is not always easy, Scorpius Malfoy." Podmore looked down at their hands and said, "If you sacrificed yourself, could you live with knowing it might kill her too?"

"…Why hasn't the Order told us about this?" Al wondered.

"They might not know," Podmore said, "but if they do, it is likely they see the benefits of having the connection outweighing the risks."

"How would we break the connection?" Rose asked. "Orion's dead. All our research told us it would be impossible to break now."

"All your research has been at the library at Hogwarts, correct?" Rose nodded, and he smirked, which made her feel a little embarrassed. "Not all knowledge is deemed fit to be kept at a school, I trust you know that."

"Just tell us where to find it," Al said, crossing his arms. She could tell he was having none of Podmore's dramatic tone.

"The Department of Mysteries should be able to help you," he said. "But I warn you to not fully trust them. As I said before, the Ministry has its own agenda more often than not."

"The Department of Mysteries is independent, isn't it?" Rose asked.

"So they say. But the truth may be that the Unspeakables there have more influence over the rest of the Ministry than it might appear," Podmore said.

"You're wrong," Rose said. "About the Ministry. Kendall is a good man, and my mother would never let herself be used by the Department."

"You have much faith in your family, Rose Weasley. And in your government. I find that surprising, given your politics."

"There's a difference between opposition and lack of faith," Rose said. "I have faith in the system, not the people."

"You just said you believed in your mother, and in the Minister."

"Those particular people I do," Rose said. "Why does it matter?"

"Loyalty can be a powerful thing," Podmore said. "I hope yours is not misplaced. There's greatness in you, Rose; don't let them manipulate it."

"Why are you helping us, if you don't trust anyone we trust?" Al asked.

"As I said. My calling is to guide you to your destinies."

"Do you know what those are?" Scorpius asked. "Do you know what it means by sacrifice? Will one of us really have to die?"

Podmore looked down. "Nothing about that is clear. Sacrifice could mean many things, but death is a possibility you should be prepared for."

"Thanks, that clears it up," Scorpius muttered. "Come on, let's go, this isn't worth it anymore."

"Wait," Rose said to him, and turned back to Podmore. "What about the Elder Wand? How much do you know about it?"

"A great deal," Podmore said. "But I told you I do not know if Nott is its true master."

"I know that," she said. "But who would? Is there anyone else who would know?"

"Only one," Podmore admitted, "but he is dead. Though through the Stone, you may be able to reach him."

"Who?" she asked.

"Albus Dumbledore." Rose exchanged glances with Al and Scorpius; she knew McGonagall would be against it, but it did seem like their only option. She had one more question for him, though, and looked back at the Order leader.

"You said we should ask the Unspeakables for help before," she said. "Would they know more? About the prophecy, and the— the sacrifice?"

"No one does," Podmore said. "We have studied for years, and it is still unclear to my brothers and I." Rose was disappointed, but nodded.

"Thank you," she said, and she was about to go when he stopped them.

"Though I have seen a new prophecy growing. You can tell when these things will come soon if you know what to look for. Unrest, major shifts, or simply proximity of a Seer to people coming close to their destinies…" He nodded. "Another prophecy will likely come soon. When it does, things will be clear."

"Okay," Al said, "is that all?"

"Yes," he said. "For now. Please, take my advice. And be careful, when choosing your friends. Especially now."

"We will," Rose said uneasily, and they left the cell, the security guard locking the door quickly behind them. Her mother was immediately leading them down the hallway.

"In my office we can extract the memory, come with me," she said, and they followed her back down the hall to her office as Rose tried to process what they'd heard.

"I think he's right," Al said. "About the connection. It feels right. We need to get rid of it."

"I know," Rose said. "I agree."

"Me, too, but the Unspeakables make me nervous," Scorpius said. "It's just like he said, they have their own priorities, their own plans."

"Well, whatever happens, I can't go on risking my life if I'm risking yours too," Al told them. "I'm coming back to school, until we figure this out."

"I'm sorry, Al, I know how much you want to help," Rose said, but truthfully, she was much more at ease with that decision now after what they'd just heard. They entered the office then, and Rose stepped forward first to have her memory filed. What Podmore had said, despite what she wanted to believe, had affected her a little, and for the first time in a while she felt doubts giving the Ministry the whole truth. She knew in her heart that her mother only wanted to help, but Podmore's words had planted a seed in her mind, and as her mother's wand pulled Rose's memory into the Pensieve she felt dread creeping up and coiling around inside her like a snake.


	9. Albus and Albus

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading, and please review, I really appreciate it. Enjoy! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 9

ALBUS AND ALBUS

"Who can tell me what the Underground does?" Rose, from the second row, raised her hand, but Creevey called on someone else.

"It transports people within London, without needing cars," Grace Zabini said, and she nodded.

"Yes, and what kind of magic does this replace?"

"Apparition? Floo network?" she said. "Er, the Knight bus?"

"Very good," Creevey said. "This is all tied to the idea that human beings need to interact with one another, which is related to which main theme of civilization?"

"Communication," more than one student said, sounding slightly bored, and Creevey wrote it on the board in big letters. NEWT Muggle Studies was a more broad, theoretical study of Muggle society this year, and whether the curriculum naturally took that turn or whether it was a new concept Rose didn't know. She didn't dislike this shift, however, as learning about computers and toaster ovens at such a beginner level was beginning to seriously bore her.

"Communication," the professor repeated. "In keeping with our goal of relating this back to our world, how do Muggle forms of communication differ from our own?"

Devon Goyle raised his hand and said, "It seems like it's usually quicker—with the Internet and all. Owls take days."

"Right, but we can get to people instantly, just by Apparating," Dean said from behind him.

"Very good points, both of you," Creevey said. "You've highlighted the main difference the text points out. Muggles communicate less personally, and more quickly. We deal with more personal interactions, but it often takes time."

"You could say then that their society is more evolved than ours in that way," Rose said. Whispers erupted, as usual when she spoke.

"I wouldn't say that, Rose," Jared Macmillan scoffed from his seat next to hers.

"Why?" she asked. "We haven't developed instantaneous communication using magic, apart from transporting ourselves. They've done that, with technology."

"How is Apparition any different from instant messaging?"

"Well, do you have hours and hours for me to answer that? Of course it's different," she said. "Not to mention we've arbitrarily cut off our using Muggle technology at the invention of the radio. It's just absurd, and it stems from a sense of superiority we're going to have to overcome at some point."

"Doesn't Wizarding society's unwillingness to use Muggle technology make an argument against integration?" another Ravenclaw from the back of the room asked. "Who says we can ever get along if our societies are so different we're willing to purposefully ignore technological advancements to remain separate? You don't think that implies fundamental differences between our groups?"

"No, I don't, I think it implies stubbornness and superiority complexes, both of which we could get over if we ever talked to each other," Rose snapped at the girl, and Creevey interjected herself back into the fray.

"Which circles back to the importance of communication. And as much as I love classroom discussions, we are out of time for today. Save these ideas for the Friday discussion time. We'll be talking about St. Andrew's Day on Wednesday so bring your notes!" The class broke up then, Rose not waiting around to be waylaid by her opponents wanting the last word. She was meeting Arya in the library before dinner, and Muggle Studies was her last class of the day. She had been spending more time with her tutoring student lately, ever since Podmore had told her proximity to Seers could prompt new prophecies. So far, however, the girl had continued to act completely normal, asking for books ahead of her year and avoiding most social events. She seemed to enjoy spending time with Rose, though, so Rose did the best she could to help her. When she found her in the back of the library, she pulled the book she'd gotten yesterday from Madam Pince out of her bag and handed it to her.

"Hey. I found this yesterday, thought you might like it."

" _Arithmancy Throughout the Ages_ ," Arya read, and smiled at her. "Thanks."

"How were your classes?" Rose asked, taking out her own work, a very long Government essay about judicial precedent in the Wizengamot.

"All right. I got top marks in Divination again. Trelawney really likes me."

"I can imagine," Rose sighed. "She never took to me much."

Arya smiled wryly. "Yeah, she told me not to 'let you cloud my inner Eye'."

"Did she really say that?" Rose scoffed.

"Yeah. Aunt Minerva says she can teach me how to be a better Seer but honestly I think she's drunk most of the time."

"She is," Rose confirmed. "You can smell it."

"I feel kinda bad for her though."

"I don't," Rose muttered, and the doors to the library flew open, causing a pointed _Shh!_ from Madam Pince. "Isn't that your boyfriend?" Arya asked hesitantly. Rose knew the answer was probably yes before she looked, and sure enough, Scorpius and Al had been the source of the noise and were now rushing over to their table.

"What is wrong with you?" Rose demanded.

"Sorry," Al panted. "We've been looking for you. We just got word—there was a battle in Galway. Everyone's fine," he added quickly, seeing their faces, "but we took five Follower prisoners, including Lestrange himself."

"Wow," Rose said, eyes wide. "That's really impressive. Are they questioning him?"

"I'm sure. I'll write my dad, but he probably won't be able to tell me much," Al admitted, sinking down into one of the chairs across from them. "Oh, I wish I'd have been there."

"Sorry, Al," she said, but he waved her off.

"No, it's not your fault," he said. He noticed Arya then and said, "Oh, er, hi."

"Hi, Al," she said, finally closing the book she'd been reading throughout Al's news. "I didn't know you were back."

"Yeah, just temporarily," he said.

"That's cool, that you're in the Order. I wish I was old enough."

"It's not all fun," he said. "I was staking out a Follower hideout for eleven hours in the cold and rain a few weeks ago."

"Well, still," Arya sighed. "It's sort of boring here lately. They even cancelled Quidditch."

"He knows, he's heartbroken," Rose said. It was true; Al's first question when he came back the Monday after their meeting with Podmore was when he could try out to get his Seeker spot back. He sulked for an hour when she told him McGonagall had thought it was too dangerous to play this year.

"Quidditch is a morale booster, I still don't get it," he said.

"Have you looked outside?" Scorpius chuckled. "Someone would get pneumonia at every match."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Al said. "Speaking of which, did you hear Anna MacDougal's in the hospital wing? The rumor is she has dragon pox."

"Don't spread that rubbish any further, she was trying to Vanish spots on her face and it backfired," Rose sighed.

"Oh," he said. "Yikes."

"I feel sort of bad for her," Rose admitted. "Not one of her friends has been to see her. They're all laughing at her, actually."

"What did you expect from that lot?" Scorpius said. "I mean, seriously. They burn down buildings of people they don't like, I doubt they're the most compassionate people in the world."

"What ended up happening with Lucy, by the way?" Al asked. "We just heard she was under protection."

"Uncle Percy let her stay in their house in Paris," Rose said. "And Bella and Will, too. They're working with the Modernists over there."

"Really? Uncle Percy?" Al asked.

"Isn't that the old Minister of Magic?" Arya asked. When Rose nodded, she said, "My parents hated him."

"So did Lucy," Al said. "Wow… I didn't even know they had a house in Paris. I'd like to have a house in Paris."

"Actually, the property tax is really high, it's cheaper in the south of France," Scorpius said quietly, and Al rolled his eyes.

"You should write a book, mate, 'Problems of the Idle Rich'."

"It's not my money," he protested, "it's my father's money."

"Literally only rich people say that," Al said.

"Anyway," Rose said, sensing Scorpius was getting embarrassed, "How are things with Alana? Have you talked to her?"

It was Al's turn to look uncomfortable. "I, er… sort of. She's kind of avoiding me."

"Why?"

"Well, I didn't exactly tell her I wasn't coming back," Al said. "I just thought it'd be easier…"

"Really, Al? You thought that was a good plan?" Scorpius said. "Do you remember what happened when I did that?"

"I wasn't thinking about that, I was thinking about her," Al said. "I didn't want to break up with her, but I didn't want to still be together and have her worried about me or… I don't know, I just thought it would be easier for both of us."

"Al…" Rose sighed, "Of course she's angry. She didn't know where you two were, that's worse than knowing, even if it's bad."

"No it's not!" Al exclaimed. Scorpius was shaking his head and Al asked him, "Is it?"

"So I've learned," he said sheepishly, and Al sighed and sunk back in his chair.

"I'll come up with something, I don't know," he said. There was a moment of quiet before he turned to Rose. "Er… have you asked her, about…?" he asked, glancing at Arya.

"I haven't seen anything yet and I haven't made any more prophecies, if that's what you mean," Arya said. "But lots of people seem to think I will. My aunt says my parents should come hide at Hogwarts. Can people even do that?"

Rose was about to explain when Scorpius quickly said, "I think so. If the headmistress says so, I'm sure they could."

"Excuse me," someone said behind them, and they turned around to see Neville standing in front of their table. "The headmistress would like to see you." All four stood up, but he shook his head. "Just you three," he said, looking at Rose, Al, and Scorpius. "Sorry, Arya. Order business."

"We'll be back," Rose promised her, and they stood up and followed the professor out of the library.

"I used to hate being on the other end of that, but it's kind of nice to hear when it involves you," Al mused.

"What was that?" Rose asked Scorpius. "Back there, with Arya?"

"There's no reason to tell her until she needs to know for certain," he said. "Kids talk."

When they reached the headmistress's office, Neville stopped outside the door and they walked in to find the headmistress alone, and noticeably, the Resurrection Stone on her desk. "Professor?" Rose asked. "How did you get that?"

"The Department of Mysteries released it for our use after analyzing it and declaring it safe," McGonagall said.

"What are we using it for?" Al asked.

"We're going to call for Albus Dumbledore, as Podmore suggested," the headmistress said.

"Right, I'll just be outside, then," Al said shortly, but Rose grabbed his arm.

"This is about all of us, don't you want to know who's Master of the Wand?" she argued, and he stayed put, looking annoyed. They all watched intently as McGonagall picked up the Stone and turned it around three times.

The man they had seen in his portrait many times appeared in front of them, taller than Rose had expected, wearing white robes with his long hair and beard both combed and flowing down to at least his waist. He smiled kindly at them through completely clear half-moon glasses. Just like James Potter and Sirius Black had been, he was nearly transparent, and clearly between worlds. "Minerva," he said softly. "How wonderful to see you again."

"Albus," she whispered, looking overwhelmed. "My old friend."

He seemed to notice them then and said, "I believe you are Rose, Scorpius… and Albus," he said, his voice softening at the last name, though Al's stare was just as cold as before.

"It's an honor to meet you, sir," Rose said, and Dumbledore smiled.

"Give your parents my best," he said. "All of you," he added, looking at Scorpius. "Please, tell Draco I never blamed him for what happened."

"Well, I blame you," Al burst out. Everyone in the room who could breathe seemed to be holding their breath. "I'm sorry. I've wanted to say this to you for a long time. And it's not an honor to meet you!" he added, glancing at Rose. "Everything you did, it was all for yourself. You can pretend you're some symbol of wisdom and knowledge but none of this would have happened if it wasn't for you! If you hadn't gone looking for the Hallows none of this would have happened, and yet you let all those people die because of your mistakes. You forced my father to die for you and you didn't even have the basic decency to warn him! All the blood of the Wars, and Grindelwald too, all of that is on your hands. I'm ashamed to be named after you."

No one spoke for a while; Dumbledore looked very distraught. "Albus—"

"Al," he said, through gritted teeth. "Not Albus. Never Albus."

"Al, your father understood what his sacrifice meant."

"I know what it meant. That's not what I said. I said you used him. And if he doesn't care about that, I can't tell him what to think, but I do." The two looked at each other for a long time, in silence, before the headmistress spoke.

"Albus," McGonagall finally said, "If you know who they are I trust you know why you are here."

"You'd like to know about the Elder Wand," he said, nodding gravely. "Harry was right. It should have never been reawakened."

"But it has been, sir," Rose found a way to speak. "We need to know by whom."

"If someone Disarms someone while Imperiused, would they be able to take control of the Wand?" McGonagall asked.

"I'm not entirely sure," Dumbledore said. "I should think it would pass to the person controlling the Imperiused individual."

Rose felt a weight lift off her chest as Al breathed, "Then it can't be either of us." Then she realized what that meant.

"So it's Nott's," she said. "Fogg was controlling Al, and Kingsley took it from him. And then Nott killed him."

"Wait," Al said. "My dad said he let me take it. That isn't right, because you let Snape kill you so it wasn't his," he said to Dumbledore, though he wouldn't look him in the eye, who nodded. "Then it's still my dad's?"

"It could be, or it could not," Dumbledore said. "If you overpowered him before you took the wand…"

"I don't remember," Al said. "And it all happened so fast, according to him…"

"Then I'm afraid it remains unclear," Dumbledore said.

"Is there any way to tell whose it is?" Rose asked.

"Is Nott using the Wand?" he asked.

"Yes," Rose said. "But not for anything all that remarkable."

"The only way to truly know is to test its power," Dumbledore told them. "And since that may prove impossible… the only way to really know would be if Theodore Nott and Harry Potter were to duel. Of course, the winner would emerge the Master of the Wand regardless."

The room was silent until Al spoke. "So a final battle is inevitable, then? That's what you're saying?" he asked, looking at his namesake with a grim expression.

Dumbledore nodded slowly. "It is the only way."


	10. Slug Club Christmas

**Hi everyone! Sorry it's been a while, it won't be as long before the next chapter. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter, please review, and thanks for reading! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 10

SLUG CLUB CHRISTMAS

17-12-23

Rose,

We met before, in Diagon Alley this past summer. I wanted to send this to Lucy, but she told me the headquarters burned down and I thought you would probably know her new address. If you do, could you send this to her after you read it? Anyway, things have been hectic in the PM's office; the attacks on Muggles are really starting to scare Parliament. They think it's terrorists, and it's causing a lot of upheaval. The Minister was here last night; I think he might have told the PM I had contacts in the Wizarding world because she's taking an interest in me now all of a sudden. The Cabinet, especially the Home Office, is getting suspicious, and I think there must be intelligence efforts going on. I have a friend in that office but all he'll tell me is they aren't sure it's terrorists. So I don't think the official story is holding. I have no idea how the Statute is going to hold—the PM seems ready to tell the Cabinet at any moment. But I have to say, I don't think revealing yourselves as the cause of all these attacks is going to do any good for your image. The climate is really tense, and I don't think right now that everyone has the capacity for nuance. If you need more information soon, you can write me anytime. To my flat, not my office—the last time an owl got in here it was a disaster.

Fabian Wolpert

"I need to get this to Lucy," Rose said when she had finished reading the letter at breakfast.

"I think you need to get it to McGonagall," Scorpius said, frowning as he read over her shoulder. "Or your uncle. Or the Minister. Lucy's only going to see the part about Muggles wanting to know."

"Well, that is the important part," Rose said, starting to feel a little defensive.

"No, Fabian's right," Al said. "The Muggle world's a powderkeg right now, Rose. They're protesting against Muslims without any proof it's even terrorism, just on a hunch. What will they do when they find out some secret society is the source of the deaths?"

"So now you're against exposure?" Rose exclaimed.

"I'm against being rash about it," he said. "Maybe after the war would be better, I don't know."

"But it isn't us," Rose protested, "it's Nott."

"It's just like he said, most people won't see it that complexly," Al argued. "Nott isn't doing us any favors, and I'm sure it's no accident. He can radicalize even more of us to his cause if Muggles start attacking us."

Rose knew he was right, so she eventually conceded, "All right, I'm still sending it to Lucy but I'll write to Teddy or James too." Al looked relieved, and Rose had no idea where he had gotten this strategic analysis from, but it was a little startling. "But I don't understand why this is escalating now. There haven't really been any attacks lately."

"That always just makes the Aurors more nervous," Al said. "It means we don't know where Nott is or what he's planning. And it usually means something bigger is coming. It's probably made the Muggle government nervous, too."

"Mind if I interrupt for a moment?" Rose looked up to see Slughorn standing over their shoulder, smiling awkwardly. "I would be very pleased if you all would come to my Christmas party Thursday night. Dates are welcome as well, Mr. Potter," he added, looking at Al, who nodded, seeming uncomfortable.

"…We'll be there," Rose said quickly, before either boy could object, and Slughorn's smile widened.

"Excellent! Well, I will see you all in class shortly, then, enjoy your breakfast…" The professor wandered away to invite the next Slug Club members and Al and Scorpius both grimaced at Rose.

"Thanks for that," Scorpius said.

"We need to find out why he's here and what he's doing for McGonagall," Rose said. "He needs to trust us."

"I've never been to one of these things, is it awful?" Al asked hesitantly.

"Well… a little. But the Christmas party would be less formal, I'd bet," Rose said. "My mum said it was more like a dance."

"That's all right for you two! I have to find a date," he grumbled. "Alana would never go with me, not after what happened last month."

"Have you still not talked?" Rose asked. Al shook his head. "Al…"

"I know," he sighed. "I don't know what there is I can do. If she's made up her mind, I can't keep on bothering her."

"Bothering her? I've heard you talk about her, this isn't some casual thing, is it?" Scorpius asked. "I mean, your brother never stopped 'bothering' Alice and it worked out for him."

"I'm not James," Al sighed. "When he does it, it's charming; when I do it, it's just sad."

"…Well, anyway, not to inflate your head any further but there are lots of girls who would go with you in a heartbeat," Rose said, unable to stop herself from rolling her eyes a little. "Especially after you left to join the Order."

"Just ask some giggly sixth year Hufflepuff and be done with it," Scorpius suggested. Al frowned.

"Seriously, do you two think you're talking to James?"

"We're late, come on," Rose sighed, shaking her head, and the three of them got up and hurried to Potions.

That Thursday night, Rose looked through her trunk and found yet again that she had practically nothing to wear. She hated reusing dresses too often, and eventually found one that she hadn't worn since her last birthday party, a knee-length blue semi-formal Malkin's dress. She made a halfhearted attempt to smooth her hair, unsuccessfully, and settled for pulling half of it up and went downstairs where Scorpius was waiting for her, in dress robes that looked brand new. "Well?" she asked, only half-joking.

"I remember that dress," he said, smiling a little. "From Christmas two years ago, right?" Rose blushed as she remembered, and nodded.

"I guess that makes this our two-year anniversary," she said.

"I don't know if we should be celebrating the first few months," he said, smiling even more. "Besides, I didn't get you anything."

"Well, I'm guessing you got me something for Christmas," Rose said.

"I'm saving that." Scorpius paused. "…You look beautiful."

"Thanks," Rose said, smiling. "You look good, too. Those are new, right?"

"I keep growing," he said, shrugging. "It's a bit annoying. And these robes make me look stiff."

"No, they don't, you look handsome," she said. "Let's go." As they walked, Rose realized she hadn't talked to Al about the party since Tuesday and asked Scorpius, "Do you know who Al's bringing?"

"No," Scorpius said. "But I don't think he'd want to upset Alana, so probably no one serious, a friend or something…"

"Or maybe Alana?" Rose suggested.

"I doubt it," he said. "He didn't seem all that happy during our free period." When they reached the Potions hallway, Rose took Scorpius's arm and they walked into Slughorn's office. The room had been converted into a dance floor, with small tables full with food and drinks along the walls. The music was rather loud, and the addition of dates had increased the population of the party considerably, so it was harder than Rose had anticipated to find anyone. Scorpius had a better view, having cleared six feet tall, and said, "I don't think Al's here yet. Though Lily's dancing pretty close with Lorcan Scamander, so that's… a little disturbing."

"Let's try to find Slughorn, then," Rose said, and weaved her way through the crowd, looking for the professor. Instead, she ran into Roxanne, who was pulling Claire Tyler along behind her. "You came, I'm surprised," she said, while her cousin looked sheepish.

"Yeah, well, a party's hard to say no to," she said. Rose couldn't help but notice Roxanne was uncharacteristically giggly and didn't seem very put together and frowned.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine," she said, though she almost laughed again. "Er, just so you know, I know you don't drink—we spiked the pumpkin juice."

"Good to know," Rose said, glancing at Scorpius, who looked much more amused. "You haven't seen Al, have you?"

"Oh, yeah, he's here," she said.

"Who's he with?" Rose asked, and Roxanne shook her head.

"Nobody. He came alone. He heard Min brought Alana as friends so he's trying to find her."

"Where did you see him?" she asked.

"I'll go get him," Roxanne said, and was off through the crowd as quickly as she'd come.

"I, um, I hope you don't think it's weird, me and her," Claire said to them, and Rose blinked.

"So you're telling people now?" she asked.

"Well, she got it into her head she wanted to, so she had a couple shots of firewhisky before we came and now she's a little…" she trailed off and Rose nodded.

"Yeah, I can tell. But no, I don't mind, it's okay," Rose said, and just as she did Roxanne had returned, though she was alone.

"Er, he's out in the hall with Alana…" she giggled, and Rose connected the dots.

"Right, okay, thanks," she said. "Happy Christmas." She led the way, Scorpius following her, and paused a few paces away. "Honestly, where do they even get alcohol from?"

"It's actually easier than you'd think," Scorpius said, and Rose sighed.

"You know what? I don't want to know." She scanned the room again for Slughorn and this time found him talking to two students by the desserts. "Evening, sir!" she exclaimed with much more energy than she usually exhibited.

"Ah! Rose! And Scorpius, Happy Christmas to you both, enjoying ourselves?" he asked.

"Yes, sir," Scorpius said, and Rose took a cauldron cake from the table while Slughorn interrogated Scorpius about his parents.

"…Well, I suppose you're following more in your mother's footsteps than your father's, eh?" the professor asked him. "I had your mother when she was here, always very impressive defensive magic. I went to her first duelling championship… still planning to join the Aurors?"

"Yes, sir, if I can meet the requirements," he said, and Rose felt the feeling of unease that arose every time he talked about the Auror program come creeping back.

"I believe they've been relaxed, with the times we're in, so that shouldn't be much trouble," Slughorn said. "And, you, Rose?"

"Still magical law, sir," she said, and he nodded.

"A noble pursuit, to be sure. I've read some of your essays… not always entirely my cup of tea but your writing is wonderful, of course!" Rose glanced at Scorpius and fought the urge to sigh heavily. "You're still interested, though, after what's been happening in politics?"

"I'm more interested than ever, Professor," she said. Deciding to press her luck, she added, "I hardly thought about it until the war started. But I suppose both Scorpius and I have become more dedicated through our work this year."

Slughorn's smile became less pronounced and he nodded. "Yes, I know all about that. It's very impressive, very good work."

"I would think you feel the same about your work?" Rose asked, trying to sound confident, and he laughed nervously.

"Well, it is a bit different for me, Rose, my time for choosing paths has long passed, but I do find some satisfaction in helping the cause, of course, that is if I ever was actually asked to do so."

"McGonagall hasn't asked you for anything?" she asked, the surprise in her voice betraying her.

"Well, no, it seemed like you knew—I'm here to advise the headmistress should she need it, but she hasn't yet. Er… excuse me," he said, and waddled away rather suddenly. Rose turned to Scorpius in exasperation.

"I can't believe he isn't—why would she bring him back if she didn't need him?" Rose groaned. "We're in the Slug Club for nothing."

Scorpius shook his head. "This was your idea."

Rose frowned. "Shut up."

He laughed a little and said, "We're already here, might as well enjoy ourselves. Dance with me?" But the music suddenly stopped and a few of the lights went out. As the crowd started to panic, he said, irritation evident in his voice, "Do you think our relationship is dependent upon never actually acting like a couple because things like this keep happening?"

"Introspection later," Rose suggested, and raced over to the other side of the room, Scorpius running after her, where she spotted Al now standing with Alana.

"What's going on?" he asked them, and Rose shrugged.

"We don't know," she said. "We were talking to Slughorn—"

"Everyone remain calm!" a voice said, clearly magically amplified, and Al looked at them in alarm.

"Isn't that—"

"I'm James Potter and I'm here on behalf of the Aurors," the voice said, now matched indeed with Rose's cousin, entering the room with purpose and holding his wand to his neck. "Hogwarts is under lockdown so I'm afraid no one comes in or out of here until further notice. Thank you." James walked further into the room then, walked up to Slughorn and began speaking with him. When the professor walked away, looking somewhat dazed, Rose, Scorpius, and Al ran up to him. "Hi, guys, I don't have much time."

"What the hell is going on?" Al asked.

"There was a battle in Hogsmeade. Or more like an attack. Two were dead before we even got there, that bloke that owns Honeydukes and his wife," James said. "A couple more people got serious injuries in the Hog's Head, Bones is going to St. Mungo's."

"I could've been there," Al said, looking a little offended.

"No you couldn't," James said, "none of you are supposed to until we figure out what's going on with your heads."

"What's wrong with their heads?" Lily demanded, having just shown up with Lorcan following, and Hugo was running towards them too.

"That's Order business, you're too young," James said. Lily looked downright murderous. "…Well, anyway, Lorcan, you definitely can't hear any of this."

"What, you mean their connection?" he asked. Everyone froze, and he said, "What? Mum told us ages ago. You've, um…" he cleared his throat, clearly embarrassed, before saying, "You've got lots of Nargles flying between you all the time."

"Oh, bloody hell, okay, fine, you can stay," James sighed. "You three are not allowed in battle until the connection's gone."

"Connection?" Hugo asked, his voice sounding weak.

"Scorpius, Al, and I have been able to communicate with each other with our minds since first year," Rose told him. "We weren't sure why for a while but we found out it was Orion—oh, you don't remember him. The professor that was recruiting students, we told you about him, right?"

"I think so," Hugo said.

"Okay, well, he sort of reawakened the Order of the Cobra, that's why they're following us right now—but he died, so the connection stuck since he never undid it. And now we're trying to stop it."

"Why?" Lily asked.

"…Right now, if one of us—if something happened to one of us, the rest of us would…" Al trailed off, and everyone fell silent.

"Anyway," James said, sounding impatient, "the Department of Mysteries is working on it, and last I heard they said they had a working theory, but I don't know how close they are. Until then… sorry, but you just can't help, it's too dangerous."

"We know. Thanks, James," Rose sighed.

"I've got to go," he said. "I was supposed to report back immediately—I'll see you tomorrow, then, I'll be at the Burrow for the holiday."

"Bye, James," Rose said, and with that he was gone.

"So… you three, you're psychic or…?" Hugo asked, still seeming to be having a hard time with it.

"Not exactly," Rose said. "But if it helps… sure."

"Not to sound rude, but why is it so important that you all stay out of danger?" Lily asked. "Why is the Ministry so invested in keeping at least one of you alive? No offense."

Rose looked at Al and Scorpius hesitantly. _Should we tell them?_

 _They're never going to stop asking if we don't,_ Al thought, and sure enough, Lily was looking annoyed.

"Are you doing it right now?" she exclaimed.

"Sorry," Rose said.

"There's… a prophecy, Lil. It's, er, about us. We aren't completely sure what it means, but if Nott's going to be defeated…" Al said.

"So you're the chosen ones? What people are saying, it's true?" Lorcan asked. All three looked solemn and Rose hesitated again.

Finally, she said, "I don't know about that, but if the prophecy's true… we might be the Order's only chance to win this war."


	11. Christmas Eve

**Hi guys! Thank you so much for reading, please review, and I hope you enjoy! (Also, happy birthday to Draco Malfoy!) -Kelly**

CHAPTER 11

CHRISTMAS EVE

Rose's family Apparated into the alley near the restaurant at exactly 7:00. Hugo, still not used to the sensation, clung to their mother for a few more seconds as he steadied himself while their father looked out around the corner at the street. "I don't think they're there yet," he said, eyeing the windows of the bistro in downtown London that the Malfoys had suggested.

"Well, let's just go in, Ron, they'll be here soon," her mother said, and they crossed the street toward the restaurant. Their father snorted when they opened the door and observed the decorations.

"We might be able to afford one meal for the four of us," he muttered, as Rose's mother looked at him sternly and approached the hostess.

"Hi, er, Astoria Malfoy, party of seven?" she said, and the hostess looked at them hesitantly.

"Would you please wait until your entire party has arrived?" she asked, and Rose's mother walked back to them, looking a little annoyed. A few minutes later, Scorpius and his parents walked through the door, Mrs. Malfoy running up to Rose's mum looking apologetic.

"So sorry we're late, Hermione," she said, and Mr. Malfoy nodded at Rose's father curtly. The hostess led them back to a table in the back of the restaurant, and Rose had to admit her dad was probably right—this restaurant did look rather expensive. When they were seated and had ordered drinks, the table was quiet for a few moments before Mr. Malfoy turned to Rose's mum.

"I've been hearing things about a large-scale action coming soon," he told her. "I was trying to find you at the office yesterday—"

"Oh, sorry about that, I went home early," she said. "But that doesn't surprise me, what with the possibility of the ICW convening."

"They're convening?" Rose asked eagerly. "To vote?"

"Not necessarily," her mother said. "But possibly."

"Let's not talk about this now, it's Christmas Eve," Mrs. Malfoy said. "We're here for Rose and Scorpius, it's been over a year now and we've never really talked." Hugo looked like he wanted to hide under the table and Scorpius looked at her, amused.

 _Sure, a year. Or two._

 _It'll be fine, we'll survive._

 _Sorry about her._

"Right," Rose's mother said cheerily, though her father looked less amenable. "Er, so what is it you do, Astoria?"

"Oh, I manage a nonprofit associated with the Sentient Being Rights Coalition of the ICW." Her mother's eyes lit up.

"Really? I worked at Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures as my first job. I started a house elf rights society in school."

"I remember that, I think," Astoria laughed.

"Oh, yeah, she made us wear badges," her dad said, rolling his eyes.

"What's wrong with wearing badges?" her mother demanded.

"Hermione, they said SPEW on them."

"SPEW?" Mr. Malfoy asked incredulously. "I heard about that—I thought it was a joke."

"It wasn't a joke," her mother said quietly, looking a little offended even after all these years. "Er, does your society work on house elf rights causes, Astoria?"

Mrs. Malfoy looked uncomfortable. "Er… no… it's been difficult to gain support, you understand, and we receive Ministry funding so we have to demonstrate interest…"

"Right, yes," Rose's mum said. "What about centaurs?"

"Yes, and werewolves, vampires…" They continued their conversation for several minutes and eventually, Mr. Malfoy regarded Rose's dad across the table.

"…Any plans for tomorrow?" he asked him, and Rose's dad nodded, seeming resigned to having to talk to him.

"Yeah. We host everyone at our house with Harry and Ginny."

"Right, Scorpius told me about that before," Mr. Malfoy said. "That sounds nice, we used to have dinner with the Burkes but…" he trailed off, and Scorpius looked down.

Rose's dad seemed surprised. "Not anymore? I thought Astoria and Daphne were close."

"Er… they're angry that their son became the heir to the Malfoy fortune for a while and now… isn't," Mr. Malfoy explained.

"Oh," Rose's dad said. "Right. Well, I suppose that's an advantage of not having much to inherit." Rose knew her father had always been insecure about his modest upbringing, and was probably more directly confronting it than usual by sitting across from Draco Malfoy; sure enough, his face was turning pink.

Mr. Malfoy seemed to notice this and said, "Well, you and Hermione have done very well for yourselves." Rose's dad nodded, looking uncomfortable.

"Merlin, when can this end?" Hugo whispered.

The waiter having only just arrived, Rose simply sighed. This was going to be a long night. It seemed like an eternity before they were finally done with their meal, though Rose had to say that their parents were getting along better than she had expected, despite the remaining awkward pauses. When they had finally paid and were leaving the restaurant, Scorpius pulled her aside.

"Do you have a minute?" he asked. "Do you think your parents will let you walk with me?"

"Er, maybe," Rose said, "Dad?" she called, but just then she saw someone cross the street headed right for them.

"Rose?" It was a girl, tall with long black hair and dark eyes that it took her a moment to recognize. "Rose Weasley?"

"Emily, hi," she said, hoping to be loud enough that everyone else noticed, and sure enough she saw her parents tucking their wands further into their jackets. Her own wand sticking out of her back pocket, she hoped her coat was covering it as she hugged her old friend. "How have you been?"

"Good, good, still going to St. Catherine's."

"Oh, wow," Rose said, unable to even fathom that. "Er, this is Emily Gardner, we went to primary school together," she said to Scorpius, hoping he'd get the message.

"Hi, I'm Scott, nice to meet you," he said, and Rose almost giggled. _Scott?!_

 _It's the name I used working in the bookshop. Scorpius raises a lot of eyebrows._

"Oh, yeah, your boyfriend, I've seen you on Instagram," Emily said. "Though not lately, I swear, Rose, you never post during the school year."

"I told you, our school doesn't have wifi, they have this weird one-with-nature policy," Rose said, the standard lie.

"Right," Emily said. "I forgot. Do you go to her genius school too?" she asked Scorpius.

"It's not a genius school, it's for gifted—" Rose said, feigning annoyance, but Emily rolled her eyes and laughed.

"She's modest."

"Not usually," Scorpius replied, looking amused. "We've been competing for top of the class for six years."

"That doesn't surprise me," Emily said. "We should catch up, though, there's a good ice cream place on this street—hi, Mrs. Weasley!" she called out, waving over at Rose's mother, who waved back and walked over.

"Emily, is that you? We haven't seen you since you and Rose were both 12," her mother said.

"Er, Mum, is it okay if _Scott_ and I go for ice cream with Emily? We'll meet you at home," Rose said, not sensing another way out of the situation.

"Sure, dear, but I think your father and… Scott's parents wanted to go to the Leaky Cauldron, so we'll be there if you need anything," her mother said. "Could you take Hugo?"

Rose sighed, but Emily lit up. "Aww, Hugo? That'd be great! Oh my god, is that him? He's so tall!"

"Fine," Rose sighed, and their parents left Hugo and the three of them to walk down the street for ice cream.

"What's a leaky cauldron?" Emily asked.

"It's a pub, really niche, my dad's favorite," Rose said, not seeing any harm in half-truth. "You wouldn't know it."

"Oh. Well, anyway, what are your A-levels? I'm taking stats, business, and economics, and they're all killing me."

"Er, law, maths, history, lit, and government," Rose said, and Scorpius looked rather impressed at the speed at which she was making things up.

"Politics, then?" Emily asked. She nodded and her old friend shook her head. "You would be one to take five."

"I told her it was mental," Scorpius said.

"Are you applying to Oxford? I am, I'm nervous," she asked.

"Cambridge," Rose said, hoping it would stop the questions. "But I don't know, I applied to smaller schools too, some in America…" She hoped this would cover her disappearing during college years, though Emily didn't seem deterred.

"Yeah, I don't know, my family's gone to Oxford forever. Here we are, they have the best sundaes, trust me," she said, and led them into an ice cream shop. Just as they were walking up to the counter, there was a loud bang out on the street and people started running.

"What the hell?" Emily asked, frowning, and they saw someone fall on the street, after a flash of light. Rose glanced around the shop tensely—it was just them and a shop girl, who was already running out the back—and looked at Scorpius.

"Followers?" he asked.

"Probably." A rogue spell hit the pavement in front of the shop and Rose's fears were confirmed. "Yes. Get behind the tables," she told Hugo and Emily, the latter of whom looked very distraught.

"What are you doing?" she asked nervously as they walked closer to the window. "What's going on? Is it another one of those terrorist attacks?"

"It's not a terrorist attack," Rose said, and aware she was revealing herself though not much caring, drew her wand. Scorpius did the same, and she didn't look behind her to see Emily's face though she was sure she was confused. A man in a black cloak started running at the shop and Rose threw open the door, yelled " _Stupefy!_ " and hit him before he could get to them. She and Scorpius moved to stand behind the portion of the wall that wasn't glass, though there wasn't much of it, and turned off the lights as the main guard of attackers walked by. Rose's stomach lurched when she saw they were floating Muggles above them. She glanced back at Hugo and Emily, Hugo having drawn his wand, his hand shaking, and Emily watching the Followers with an expression of confusion and horror. When they had passed, Rose told Scorpius, "We have to get to the Leaky Cauldron. But they'll be all over the streets."

"Can we Apparate?" he asked.

"Not with her," Rose said. "And I'm not leaving her."

"What are you talking about? What's going on?" Emily asked, her voice shaking. "Who were they?"

Rose sighed. "Okay, Emily, this isn't going to be easy for you to hear…"

"Rose…" Scorpius warned, but she waved him off, walking up to the table and helping her brother and friend up.

"What?" Emily asked.

She took a deep breath. "I'm a witch. We're all… witches and wizards. So are a lot of other people, and those are some of the really bad ones."

"…What?" she managed. "You're…"

"Yeah. Sorry I couldn't tell you."

"I mean… I'm sorry, just… it's a little hard to believe, I mean… you have A-levels and Instagrams and… Rose the witch? Scott the wizard? Come on!"

"We don't actually have A-levels," Scorpius said. "And for the record, my name's actually Scorpius."

"Okay, well, that sounds like a wizard name," she said, still sounding very shaken. "Is your name really Rose?"

"Yes," Rose said, "but we can talk about this later, right now we need to move. We need to get to our parents, they can help us."

"Are they wizards too?" Emily asked slowly.

"Yes," Rose said, feeling a little bad about springing this on her. "We have to go."

"Okay…" she said, and they walked out of the shop slowly, wands raised, Emily following them in a daze. They went the opposite way from the Followers, and eventually made it to Charing Cross. The second they turned onto the road, however, they saw wizards engulfed in battle, Followers against a collection of Diagon Alley bystanders, including Rose's parents.

"Damn it," Rose muttered as they retreated back into the side street. "Er… what do we do?"

"My parents are probably hiding somewhere, they can't give away their loyalties," Scorpius reasoned.

"Okay, but we can't get to the Cauldron," she said.

"Disillusionment charms?" he suggested.

"Do they work on Muggles?" Rose asked.

"I don't know," he admitted.

"Yeah, they do, we just learned them!" Hugo exclaimed.

Rose sighed in relief. "Emily, hold still."

"Wait, what are you going to do?" she asked, panicking.

"Make you invisible," she said. "Just for a moment."

"Er, okay?" she squeaked, and Rose did, quickly, before doing the same to Hugo and herself. Scorpius had already done so, and they ran past the battle on the edges of the pavement into the Cauldron. The only people there were the bartender and a few scared patrons, the Malfoys among them; they undid the charms one by one until they could be seen again and Scorpius's parents rushed over to them.

"Are you all right?" Mr. Malfoy asked them.

"We're fine," Scorpius confirmed. "Er, we had to take her with us," he added, gesturing to Emily.

"Oh," Mr. Malfoy said. "Well, it was right that you did, I don't know if you saw what they were doing."

"We did," Rose said grimly. They hid in the Cauldron, with Emily for the most part too shocked to speak, until finally Rose's parents came in along with many other shoppers and Order members that had fought.

"They retreated," Rose's mother said. "Though there were some Muggle casualties." She seemed to notice Emily then and said, "Does she…?"

"We didn't have a choice but to tell her," Rose said, and her mother nodded.

"So all the terrorist attacks, they've been… this?" Emily asked.

"Well, maybe not all of them, but yeah," Rose said. "There's sort of a war going on."

"Between you all?" Emily asked. "Over what?"

"Well… kind of over you," Rose said. "Muggles—non-magical people. How they should be treated, whether you should know… that kind of thing."

"That's awful," Emily said. "Well... what should I do?"

"That's probably enough," Mr. Malfoy said quietly.

Rose's father seemed to agree. "The Ministry's Obliviating people out there…"

"Should we…?" Mr. Malfoy asked.

"No," Scorpius said firmly, moving in front of Emily and staring down his father. "If you do, you haven't changed at all, Dad." There was a long pause before Mr. Malfoy stepped back and lowered his wand.

"I'll walk you home, Emily," Rose's dad offered. "I won't do it," he added softly, looking at Rose, Hugo, and Scorpius pointedly.

"Wait, but—"

"You can text me if you want, I'm home until the 4th," Rose said. "But you should go home."

"…Okay," Emily said, and was led out of the pub by Rose's dad and out of sight.

"It's just as well," Rose's mother said. "My phone has been going mad—similar attacks are happening worldwide. When the ICW convenes on the 1st… it's likely they'll vote on the London Resolution." Rose couldn't help but get goosebumps and tried to conceal her excitement. "We should probably go home."

"Wait one minute," Rose said. "I… just want to see if Roxanne's all right, can we go? We'll just be a few minutes."

"…Okay, be safe. Have Uncle George take you home if anything feels off." They started to walk, Rose realizing Hugo was following them at the last minute, before their mother said, "Not you, Hugo, I'm sorry, you're not of age and…"

"All right," he grumbled, and Disapparated with their mother.

"We'll see you at home, Scorpius," Mr. Malfoy said, and they Disapparated as well; Rose led him into the main street of Diagon Alley and stopped.

"Well? What did you want to talk to me about?"

Scorpius smiled. "So we aren't going to Roxanne's?"

"No. What was it?"

He blushed, surprisingly, and fumbled in his coat pocket for a moment. "Er, don't freak out, okay? It wasn't that much trouble…"

"Now I'm starting to," Rose said, a little nervous, and her breath caught in her throat when he took out a small silver ring.

"It's just, like, a promise ring, I suppose," he said, talking very fast; "It's a Malfoy family thing, I just… it's sort of our anniversary, too, so happy Christmas and happy anniversary."

"It's beautiful," Rose whispered, looking at it, noticing the emerald green threading twisting around the band. "You have to stop giving me family heirlooms."

"Well… you are my family," he said. "And, you know, with this prophecy thing…I don't know if we'll ever get the chance to… well, anyway…"

"Scorpius…" Rose said quietly. "I don't—I just sent you your present, and it isn't this nice…"

"Don't worry about it," he laughed.

She kissed him and said, "I love you so much."

"I love you too."

"I'll wear it, on a necklace though, my mum would kill me if she saw it." Rose sighed and said, "I have to go…"

"Okay," Scorpius said, "I'll see you at school."

"Visit before then," she said, and he shook his head.

"I don't have time, my parents have us busy every day."

"Day or night," she said, though she could feel herself blushing in spite of herself.

Scorpius grinned. "Bye, Rose," he said, and Disapparated. She felt like she was floating as she did the same.


	12. The Statute of Secrecy Vote

**Hi everyone! I hope you enjoy the chapter! I'm going to be out of the country for the next couple weeks so I'm not sure how much I'll be able to post but I'll definitely try and if not, a few chapters will come at once when I get back. Anyway, please review and thank you so much for reading! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 12

THE STATUTE OF SECRECY VOTE

 ** _ICW SET TO VOTE ON STATUTE OF SECRECY IN WAKE OF CHRISTMAS ATTACKS_**

 _January 2nd, 2024; by Catherine Warbeck, senior political correspondent to the Prophet_

 _The Daily Prophet confirmed this morning that the International Confederation of Wizards will be invoking the London Resolution and voting on whether to repeal the International Statute of Secrecy tonight, the first night the 2024 General Assembly convenes, in New York City. This vote comes after the deadly attacks around the world on Christmas, the largest international magical incident in recent history. The damage in Britain alone has been assessed to be valued at around 5,000,000 galleons, between Wizarding homes and Muggle buildings and infrastructure, translating to roughly 24.6 million Muggle pounds. Similar damages have been reported in other countries, and the official international death toll stands at 134 confirmed casualties, 97 of them Muggles, with more Muggles reported missing. The second deadliest attack on Muggle society in recent history, the collapse of the Millennium Bridge, had not been surpassed by a magical event until now. This attack, confirmed by the Auror department to be the work of Theodore Nott and his Followers, puts Nott at a total Muggle death toll higher than He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and approaching that of Grindelwald himself. In response to this, Minister Kendall has met with the Muggle Prime Minister and informed her of the impending vote. The Prophet could not confirm how many Muggle world leaders have been briefed, but could confirm that the United States President is aware. The Prophet has conducted an opinion poll among British Muggles already aware of magic through relations to witches and wizards, and 80% of those surveyed support a vote for repeal. As an international action, each nation possesses one vote; while Great Britain is expected to vote to repeal, neither representative could be reached for comment. The vote is scheduled for 5:00 EST, and will be broadcast on the WWN at 10:00 p.m. GMT._

Everyone in the Burrow was anxiously awaiting the results of the vote, and the tension in the house only rose each minute after the vote was delayed for security reasons. Rose most of all felt like she might be sick, but was nevertheless too eager to hear the results to think of anything else. The Burrow was crowded, which didn't help the tense atmosphere; Gran and Granddad, Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny, and Rose's parents were crowded around the wireless, and Lily and Hugo were hovering at the edges of the sitting room; Al and Rose sat at the kitchen table, still within earshot of the radio, along with James, who had brought Alice, and Teddy and Victoire, who had come over two hours ago, too anxious to listen alone. Annie was sitting on Gran's lap, fussing, not really understanding what was happening. Voices from pundits speaking during Lee Jordan's coverage were floating into the kitchen: "These security threats are just proving that a repeal will not be taken well and will likely be very dangerous for the Wizarding community."

"I disagree, I think this shows we need exposure now more than ever." Rose recognized the voice of Bennett Cavill, the lobbyist who'd campaigned for the impeachment of her uncle two years ago, and started to listen more closely. "If we are so divided that we cannot protect Muggles from ourselves—"

"Come on, Bennett, that's not even relevant."

"Yes it is, Max, if you'd let me finish, if they're being dragged into our conflicts—as they no doubt are by a security threat under Grand Central Station at the Assembly—they deserve to know enough to protect themselves and to work with us. You're forgetting that we're constituents of Parliament too. The Muggle government of every country supersedes our own, if you really want to get into the weeds of Wizengamot policy…"

"All right, I don't know if that's necessary," Lee Jordan interjected, laughing nervously.

"I hate when they do that," Rose sighed. "Do they think we're stupid?"

"This isn't really the time, Rosie," James said quietly. "People are scared."

"All they're doing is upsetting people more by arguing for what, two hours now?" Rose asked, checking her phone for the time. It was, indeed, nearly midnight, and there was a text from Scorpius, from almost an hour ago.

 _Are you listening? My parents are going mad._

She responded quickly, still trying to pay attention to the radio. _Yeah. My house is packed._ He didn't respond, and she looked up moments later to see James on his own phone.

"Fred says there are protesters in the street in Diagon Alley—for both sides, looks like."

"Doesn't surprise me," Teddy said. "Are you on call tonight?"

"If they vote to repeal," James said, nodding. "I'm guessing we've got a full guard at the Ministry?"

"Your dad's even calling former Aurors and Order member civilians in, he's expecting riots, and I have to say I agree with him," Teddy said. Al looked jealous of the two of them, something Rose would never understand. She was glad Scorpius wasn't allowed to fight either.

"Do you know anything about the odds of a repeal, Hermione?" Aunt Ginny finally asked, and the whole house fell silent apart from Jordan and the commentators.

"John's been making calls all day, I think he's still at the office, but even he says there are several toss-ups," Rose's mum said uneasily. "We know Italy will vote no; apart from that, no confirmed no votes but Albania is likely, and Germany probably as well."

"Are there confirmed yes votes?" Victoire asked.

"Apart from us, America, and France, practically everyone's been silent," she said, which did nothing for Rose's nerves.

Uncle Harry slowly shook his head. "I still don't know if this is a good idea."

"Harry?" Rose's mum exclaimed, sounding surprised.

"I support it in theory," Uncle Harry said defensively. "In a perfect world. But… you know what my childhood was like. There are plenty of Dursleys out there who will never change their minds. And besides, I don't know if right now is right either. There will be riots tonight, no matter what, and if a repeal goes through practically every traditionalist will probably be joining Nott's cause overnight."

"I don't know, Harry," Rose's dad said. "Something like this would definitely wound them."

"Wounded things lash out," Uncle Harry said gravely. A breaking news alert played from the radio then and the house fell silent again.

"We've just received word that the Assembly has been cleared by the American Aurors and is now coming to order. Taking you to New York City now," Lee Jordan said, and his voice cut out as brief static shifted them to the audio from the Assembly.

"The 334th Summit of the International Confederation of Wizards will now come to order, MACUSA President Maria Calderon-Boot presiding," Boot's voice announced. "The leadership has invoked the London Resolution decided upon in the 333rd Summit and will call a role to vote on the repeal of the International Statute of Secrecy in light of the Christmas attacks. If the repeal passes, the member nations will make a joint statement with their Muggle leaders 30 days from now, on February 1st, 2024." The chamber had gone completely silent, something Rose had come to know was very rare. She thought she could hear the president take a deep breath before she said, "We will now call the role. Albania."

"No."

"No surprise there," Alice said quietly.

"Algeria."

"Yes."

"Argentina."

"No."

The voting went on like this, Rose keeping a tally on her phone, and was at 10-5 yes when they reached France, which voted yes; they then called Germany, and there was a long pause.

"Yes."

"Oh my god," Rose's mother breathed. Rose and the others from the kitchen hurried into the sitting room, then, unable to stay seated. "That wasn't supposed to happen."

"Italy."

"No."

"Japan."

"Yes."

"Jordan."

"Yes."

The votes continued to come in; once Russia had voted yes, Rose gasped as she looked at the results. "What?" Al asked anxiously.

"Well… if I'm right, it's impossible to get enough nos."

"It has to pass with two-thirds majority," her mother said anxiously. "And some East Asian countries still haven't voted, they're possible nos."

"Spain."

"Yes."

"South Africa."

"Yes."

"South Korea."

The Burrow seemed to inhale together as the audio went quiet for a moment before a representative said, "Abstaining."

"Thailand."

"Abstaining."

"Merlin," Rose's mum breathed. "It's going to pass."

"United Kingdom."

The British representative McClain's voice said, "Yes," and Uncle Harry stood up.

"James, Teddy, with me," he said, and they drew their wands and Disapparated as Boot called, "United States."

"Yes."

"The yeses are 31, the nos are 15. The resolution passes," Boot said, and Lily jumped up and down and hugged Rose, slamming into her at full speed. The rest of the Burrow reacted similarly, until Rose's mother stood up and said, "I should get to the office, Harry's right, there'll probably be riots."

"I'm going too, they'll need all the help they can get," Rose's father said. Her mother looked at him, her expression unreadable, before nodding slowly.

"Don't get hurt," Rose heard her tell him as they walked out of the room and Disapparated in the entryway. Aunt Ginny also stood up and looked at Al and Lily.

"This hardly needs saying, but don't leave the house," she told them. "That goes for all of you, by the way," she said, looking over at Rose and Hugo as well. "Victoire, you and Annie can stay here if you'd like, and Alice too, we have an Order guard outside, it should be safer."

"Thanks, Mrs. Potter," Alice said, but Victoire went over to take Annie from Gran.

"No, we should go home," she said. "Come on, Annie."

"Mummy? I want to stay with Gran," Annie said, sounding confused, and Gran looked up at Victoire.

"Oh, let her stay with us, the poor dear's probably so scared."

"I'm sorry, Gran, I just…" Victoire glanced over at Rose and Al and said, "They put a target on this house. We're going home."

"Where's Daddy?" Annie asked as Victoire picked her up. "No!"

"Andromeda!" Victoire said sternly, and the little girl quieted. "He'll be home soon, and we'll be there when he is." They left through the Floo network then, and Aunt Ginny Disapparated just as quickly. Gran looked at Rose and Al, both a little stunned.

"I'm sure Victoire didn't mean that, she's a young mother and she's just trying to protect her daughter," Gran said. Rose nodded, though it still hurt a little.

"I know," she said quietly. Gran stood up and Granddad followed.

"We're going to bed," Gran said. "Good night, all of you. Wake us if anything serious happens." Their grandparents disappeared up the stairs and the five that remained settled into the sofas surrounding the radio, Lee Jordan's commentary streaming through.

"What will this mean for the future of the Wizarding community? Our panel of experts discuss coming up next," he was saying, and Al groaned.

"Can we turn this off? They aren't experts, this has never happened before." Rose nodded and was about to press the button when another breaking news alert sounded, interrupting the commercial.

"Breaking news out of the Ministry of Magic just now, reports of vandalism have begun to come in as crowds take to the streets in Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade, and other Wizarding communities. The protests outside of the ICW Assembly have already forced the representatives to return to their home countries through a closed Floo network in the MACUSA building and emergency Portkeys; the Ministry of Magic here in London has large crowds gathering in the lobby of traditionalist protesters. The fears that these protests will turn violent has spurred a strong response from the Auror department, sending Aurors down to the streets to regain order. Many high-profile Modernist members are feared targets, including Lucy and Rose Weasley—" Rose turned the radio off and looked anxiously out the window; Frank Longbottom was standing outside, but her nerves didn't go away completely. Her phone buzzing startled her, and she answered it seeing it was Lucy.

"Are you okay?" Lucy asked.

"We're fine, you?" Rose replied.

"Yeah, fine. France has much less pureblood snobbery, there's nothing really going on here." Lucy paused and Rose could practically hear her grinning as she added, "We did it."

"Yeah," Rose said, letting herself smile, too. "Do you know what's happening next?"

"The Minister's office said they'd be in touch if the vote went through about consulting on the best way to open dialogue with Muggle Britain, I'm guessing you'll get an owl too."

They heard a loud crack outside followed by a blast of blue light and Rose said quickly, "I'm going to have to call you back." They ran outside to find Frank with his wand trained at a Stunned figure some twenty feet away. It only took Rose a second to recognize him and said, "Frank, that's Scorpius!"

Frank lowered his wand. "Sorry, I didn't recognize him." Rose pushed past him and up to Scorpius, who was starting to sit up.

"Are you okay?" she asked urgently, and he wheezed and nodded."Merlin, that was unexpected," he managed. "Could you help me up?" Rose did and he struggled to find his balance before she led him towards the house.

Frank stepped in front of them when they reached the door and said, "I hate to do this, but you're going to have to answer a security question."

"You're Frank Longbottom, right?" Scorpius asked. Frank nodded and he said, "I stayed in your room at the Scamanders' the summer before my third year. There's a Salem Survivor poster right above the bed."

"Okay, go ahead," he said, and Rose helped him through the door where Al, Lily, Hugo, and Alice were waiting.

"You okay, mate?" Al asked. Scorpius nodded, though he practically fell onto the sofa when Rose helped him sit down. "What are you doing here?"

"I tried calling, but Rose's phone was busy, and you wouldn't answer yours," he told him. "My parents told me to go here, they went to the Ministry—my dad's been found out. They know he's been informing the Ministry. The Followers came and we barely got out alive."

"Oh my god," Rose breathed. "So they have the manor?"

"Yeah," Scorpius said, his breathing returning to normal. "I'm sorry, I didn't have anywhere else to go."

"No, I'm glad you came here," Rose said, and sat down next to him. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, Rose," he said, taking her hand.

"Draco Malfoy was the best source of intelligence we had about the Followers," Al muttered. "Damn it. They won't trust anyone new now, we'll have to convert someone, it won't be easy."

"Is he staying? I have to report to Harry," Frank called inside.

"Yes," Rose called, before anyone could argue.

"I'll go wake up Gran and Granddad," Hugo said, and disappeared up the stairs. Alice's phone rang and he walked over into the kitchen, while Lily and Al sat down on the other sofa.

"Congratulations, by the way," Scorpius told her. "It's finally happening."

"It was close, but it worked out," Rose said, nodding.

"I can't believe it, it doesn't seem real," Al said. "I mean, how will it even happen?"

"The Minister and the Prime Minister will make a joint statement on February 1st," Rose said. "Then we'll go from there. Most likely the wartime nature of things will keep everything very practical until the war's over, but after that who knows."

"I'm going to have a lot of explaining to do to my primary school friends," Lily mused. "Especially when they start seeing my dad on TV."

Hugo, Gran, and Granddad entered then, and Gran hurried over to Scorpius. "Scorpius, we're glad you're safe. Are you hurt?"

"No, Mrs. Weasley, I'm okay, thanks," he said.

"I'm going to get you some tea," she said, but as she turned around to go to the kitchen Alice entered the room, holding her phone limply to her side. She looked shocked. "Alice, dear, what's wrong?"

She looked up at all of them and solemnly said, "That was James. The Minister is dead."


	13. The Two Ministers

**Hi everyone! Good new, I have internet, so hello from Spain! I'll continue to post about twice a week, so watch for another chapter this weekend. Otherwise, I hope you like this chapter and please review! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 13

THE TWO MINISTERS

 **MINISTER KENDALL ASSASSINATED**

 _by Catherine Warbeck_

 _Minister for Magic Darius Kendall was found dead in his office at 12:21 a.m. on January 3rd by the Auror Department. The death has been ruled a homicide and was likely committed by Theodore Nott's Followers in retaliation to the repeal of the International Statute of Secrecy. The Auror Department has yet to release an official statement beyond these details, though more information will be available. Minister Kendall was 57 and is survived by his wife and three children. The Minister's death threw the Ministry into chaos in the hours following his death, until the Wizarding Labour Party appointed Hermione Granger to serve as the next Minister for Magic. As Kendall's death came during his term, no election will be held until the general election time. Widespread support has been shown for the new Minister, as her experience as a key figure in the Second Wizarding War and as Head of the International Magical Law Enforcement means she is thought to be well suited for wartime governance. Minister Granger will be holding a press conference with Head of the Auror Department Harry Potter later today, which will be covered on WWN._

Some hours after they heard the news about Minister Kendall, extra Ministry security arrived escorting Rose's dad home and stood guard outside while he told them their mother was the new Minister. This hadn't surprised Rose, not really, as she knew logically speaking her mother was probably one of about three possible choices at that time, but it was still disconcerting, and Rose was secretly glad they were going back to Hogwarts the next day. When they returned to school, the entire student body was in a frenzied state, trying to make sense of the impending changes. More than sixty people showed up to the first Modernist meeting after the break, and the Muggle Studies curriculum was largely abandoned in the younger classes to teach things like currency and civics. No one seemed to know how much would change, or how separate the magical world would remain; Rose wrote her mother several times, but all she could tell her was there were confidential 'talks' going on. Rose's government class started to focus on the Parliament and Muggle law more than ever.

"So to review, can anyone name the differences between Parliament and the Wizengamot?" Rose's government teacher, a little old woman named Lucretia Young, asked on the afternoon of February 1st. It was the last class, and the usually loud class was especially excited; apart from her first class, Muggle Studies, and this one, no one had really been paying attention at all.

"The Wizengamot also functions like a court, but the Parliament doesn't, right?" Roxanne asked. Young nodded, waddling over to the blackboard.

"Yes, you're right; the Muggle government has a supreme court to deal with the legal matters the Wizengamot's upper chamber oversees." She wrote COURTS on the board and asked, "Can anyone name another difference?"

"The prime minister can hold elections anytime, but there are fixed terms in the Wizengamot," Rose volunteered. Young nodded and added ELECTIONS to the board. "Er, Professor, do you know what parts of Muggle law we'll have to follow?"

"I believe the conference tonight will address those questions, and the Ministry will be sending out informational packets to every Wizarding home soon," Young said.

"Right, but we must know broad things already, like schools and that kind of thing," Alana said, and Young shook her head.

"I know just as much as you all."

"Well, what about—I mean, I don't think I legally exist," a Slytherin boy said, sounding nervous, and Ben Burke glowered across the room at Rose.

"What?" she asked, feeling her face turning red.

"Oh, please, this is so obviously your fault," Burke said. "Don't act like this isn't exactly what you want."

"I never said it wasn't a good thing, I just have questions," Rose said defensively.

"Why don't you ask your Mudblood mother, she probably knows, right?" he sneered. Rose resisted the urge to walk across the room and punch him, mostly because of Roxanne preemptively grabbing her arm to stop her.

"Mr. Burke, if you use that word in my classroom again I'll give you detention," Young warned, and Burke looked down at his desk angrily. "And as someone with a professed interest in government, you should know that disrespecting the Minister of Magic in such a way is reprehensible and I won't allow it."

"Whatever," he muttered. The old woman hobbled back over to her desk and checked her watch.

"I believe class is over. Your only homework is to listen to the broadcast, I believe there are several radios throughout the castle tonight." The class was out of the room quickly, the whole school's nervous energy manifesting in the hallways as people pushed by Rose with more speed and force than she thought she'd ever seen. Roxanne was walking behind her, glaring at Ben Burke and his friends across the hall, and Jared MacMillan hurried out of the classroom and over to where they were standing.

"Hey, Rose. Do you and Lily have anything planned for tonight?" he asked as they started to walk.

"Yeah, we're going to avoid the crowd at the Great Hall, Hagrid said anyone from the Modernists can listen in his house," she told him.

"Okay, brilliant, I'll be there. Er…" he looked a little uncomfortable as he asked, "Do you really not know anything else about the laws and everything?"

"Not really," Rose confessed. "I mean, from what I know already, wizarding law has always been subject to the Muggle laws of the country it operates in within reason, so we are citizens, we have representation in Parliament and everything. At least, I am, since I have a Muggle side of my family, I'm not really sure about old purebloods." They stopped outside of the fifth year Charms class she knew Lily would be getting out of any moment.

"Yeah, I went to primary school and everything, so I suppose I'm a citizen," Jared said, and the students from the class started to stream out. When Lily appeared along with Hugo and Tyler Jordan, Jared asked, "Do any of you know if wizards are citizens?"

"I mean, I am, but I think just because of my dad," Lily said. "I'm not sure if my mum is, or what my birth certificate says or anything."

"I don't think I am," Tyler said. "I mean, I had to be homeschooled because I didn't have records."

"Right, because you're pureblood?" Hugo asked. "I mean, not like me, like actually ancestrally old-family-like pureblood."

"Yeah, I suppose," Tyler said. "I don't really know what I'm supposed to do about that. Hugo, has your mum said anything?"

"For the twelfth time this week, she can't," Hugo sighed. "It's all completely classified."

"It's true," Rose said. "Sorry. Are you coming to Hagrid's tonight?"

"I am," Hugo said. "Ty?"

"Will Emma be there?" he asked. Hugo rolled his eyes.

"I don't think so," he said, looking at Rose who nodded in thanks; they both knew Emma would likely listen in the Room of Requirement with her parents, but of course they couldn't say that. Rose, knowing it would be suspicious if she wasn't at the Modernist event, had Lexa and Devon going to the Room to listen with them and answer questions; she knew the two of them probably be glad not to listen in the likely hostile Slytherin common room environment.

When they reached the Great Hall, they found Scorpius and Al playing chess at the Gryffindor table, where they had probably been their entire free period. "Hey, do either of you know if all wizards are already citizens?" Jared asked.

Scorpius was already shaking his head. "Plenty of people I know don't legally exist."

"Do you?" Rose asked, suddenly curious. She realized she'd never even thought about it.

"Yeah, well, I do, but not every pureblood," he said.

"Why do you but I don't?" Tyler asked. "I mean, the Malfoys are way more serious."

Scorpius looked a little embarrassed as he said, "Well, the Malfoy family actually has a… minor lordship." The entire group, including Al and Rose, gaped at him as he added defensively, "It's _really_ minor."

"You're a lord?" Al exclaimed between bursts of laughter.

"My dad is," he protested.

"Fine, then, you will be," Al said.

"Well… technically, yes."

"How did this happen?" Rose asked, trying not to giggle. "Why on earth do you have a Muggle title?"

Scorpius shrugged. "We weren't always hostile. A Malfoy actually almost married Elizabeth I."

Roxanne lost it then and was still cracking up when Rose managed to ask, "What happened?"

"Some stuffy bloke named Abraxas in the 1700s," he said.

"Oh my god," Al said, "what am I supposed to call you?"

"Scorpius," Scorpius said firmly, his face completely red now.

" _Lord_ Scorpius," Al laughed. "Merlin, this is brilliant. I can't wait to tell James."

"Please don't," he groaned.

"You'll be _Lady_ Rose," Al added, laughing even harder.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Rose said quickly, her face starting to redden now as well, and Hugo burst out laughing.

"Do I get to be a lord too? Like a lord-in-law?"

"That's not how it works," Lily said very matter-of-factly, and Rose felt the need to intervene.

"No one's getting married, what is wrong with you?" she exclaimed, and Scorpius buried his head in his hands, thoroughly embarrassed. It took a while for the group to recover, but eventually everyone calmed down enough to eat supper in relative peace, and for the most part by the time they reached Hagrid's hut Scorpius's title had been forgotten in light of the coming announcement. Tyler had broken off from their group, presumably to search for Emma most likely unsuccessfully, but the remaining seven were the first to arrive at the hut. Hagrid had started a fire in his hearth; the elderly groundskeeper's beard had turned almost completely white, Rose noticed as he stood up from his front porch to wave at them and smile.

"Well, ye started with a secret meeting here and here we are, five years later!" he exclaimed, and Rose grinned.

"Hi, Hagrid. Thanks for this," she said as he led them inside. He had set up his oversized dining table with long wooden benches and a tea kettle was whistling on his giant stove in the corner. A radio sat in the center, not yet turned on, and Rose sat down directly in front of it, Lily sitting on her left side and Scorpius on her right. She took a deep breath and settled in to wait for the rest of the people coming; it wasn't long before people started arriving. The last two to enter, Arya and Jack Robins, put their number at 25, and even Hagrid's large table was completely filled. The radio had gone on a few minutes ago, and Rose was trying to tune out the commentary. Before long, though, the feed cut to the press conference, and Rose heard the Muggle prime minister's voice fill the room.

"Good evening. I want to thank you all for coming today. I know the majority of you are not aware of why you are here, so I will not delay any longer." Hagrid's hut was silent, reflecting the silence apart from the noises of cameras flashing and papers being shuffled, as the prime minister continued. "This may initially seem difficult to believe, but as this is an international endeavor you won't have to rely simply on my word for very long. In light of the attacks over the Christmas season and the general escalation of such events during the past year, many of you have been asking questions, and you deserve an honest answer. There is, within Great Britain and around the world, a sizable population of people that possess magical abilities." The sounds of cameras and shouting reporters filled the room, but the prime minister continued without paying regard to it. "In our nation, magical people number about 1 in 50 people and have always lived among us with extreme discretion. Recently, however, the international magical community has decided that this separation can no longer continue. I will allow the magical community to explain why at this time. The woman to my right is Ms. Hermione Granger; she is the British Minister of Magic, the leader of our nation's magical community. Ms. Granger has prepared a statement, and we will both answer questions afterwards. Thank you." The cameras flashed again as more shuffling sounds came through the speakers, and the next voice they heard was Rose's mother.

"Good evening. As the prime minister has just said, my name is Hermione Granger and I am the British Minister of Magic. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have about wizarding society, but first I would like to explain why we are revealing ourselves to you at this moment. For the past two years, the magical community has been threatened by an extremist group, led by a man named Theodore Nott. This group believes in wizard supremacy and purity of magical blood, concepts I want to make clear the international magical community strongly condemns. Mr. Nott and his followers have become a very serious threat to our community; just last month my predecessor Darius Kendall was assassinated by this group. They have recently led widespread attacks on the non-magical community as well as wizardkind, and we felt that it was no longer responsible or fair to continue to keep this war secret. We come forward now in hopes of friendship and cooperation between our communities and to inform everyone of a very serious threat to continuing our ways of life. Before the prime minister and I take questions, I want to again stress that we are not in search of any power or influence over the non-magical community and we encourage diversity and tolerance among our communities. My own parents are not magical, and many other magical people come from similar backgrounds. I am committed to bridging the gap between our communities and helping to find solutions to our problems, especially the extremist factions that threaten all of us." Rose's mother took a deep breath and said, "We'll now begin taking questions."

The radio's sound turned to static as the noise from the conference escalated into chaos.


	14. The Muggle Response

**Hello from Spain! I hope you enjoy the chapter, please review, and I'll be posting again probably Wednesday or Thursday. Thanks for reading! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 14

THE MUGGLE RESPONSE

"Hi, I'm Jacob Bennet, from British Weekly?" Rose looked up at the young Muggle man standing next to their booth at the Three Broomsticks, smiling at them eagerly. It was nearly a month later, and the Muggle world had taken the news in a panicked sense for a while before a deluge of information started appearing in newspapers, TV shows, and online. Everything from Grindelwald's rise to power to the First and Second Wizarding Wars to the last five years of Nott's movement and the Order of the Cobra had become a fascinating well of information, and the Potters and Weasleys had become national if not international celebrities. Harry Potter, at least, was a household name around the world now, and their family was now experiencing the Muggle paparazzi wherever they went. Uncle George's business was doing better than it ever had before; products that wouldn't negatively react with Muggle physiology were labelled 'Safe for all' and were flying off the shelves, and he was opening a satellite location in Muggle London next month. Similarly, wizards were buying electronics at an unprecedented rate, and the Internet was exploding with millions of videos of and about magic. Not everyone had reacted positively, of course; human rights groups had demanded apologies for tampering with memories, which the ICW had provided. And while the population was eager to know everything they could, many international governments were hesitant to comment on the war, and while the British and American governments had pledged financial support and intelligence aid, among other nations, not one Muggle government had promised military support.

"Hi, right, please, sit down," Rose said, and Jacob Bennet did, across from her and Hugo, and pulled out a smartphone.

"You don't mind if I record, right? To help me keep things straight," he said, and Rose nodded. He grinned. "I've seen your cover, it looks great."

Hugo laughed a little. "We can't all be James, but thanks." The Potter siblings' issue of the magazine had come out last week and James had already gotten three modeling offers. Rose and Hugo had had their photo shoot earlier, at the same time as Al and Lily's—they'd come to Hogwarts because of the security risks of them going to London, and Rose thought the photographers were probably much more impressed with and focused on the castle than them. All this was rather overwhelming for Rose, though James seemed to love it. They'd never been allowed to do interviews or photo shoots before, but the Ministry thought it was good publicity so they were each doing one. Uncle Harry gave an interview, too, and Rose's parents had gone on a late night show. It was all very strange.

"Well, let's get started. First off, you're 16 and 18?"

"I'm 17, actually, my birthday's in June," Rose said.

"And in Year 11 and sixth form."

"Sort of, yes, we call it fifth and seventh year," she told him.

"And you've gone to Hogwarts since age 11."

"Right."

"My notes say you're in Gryffindor, both of you?"

"Yes."

"Okay, same as James and Al, the readers will probably remember, but I'll make sure to explain. You both play… um…"

"Quidditch," Hugo supplied. "I'm a Beater, Rose is a Chaser."

Jacob nodded, though he still looked a little lost. "So let's move on. First question, your parents are war heroes from the war with, er, Voldemort, would you say that affected your childhood?"

Rose looked at Hugo, who looked back noncommittally, and said, "Er, not really, we would see reporters a lot and sometimes people would stop them but otherwise they really protected us well from a lot of it."

"It must have been a lot of pressure, starting school, with them being so famous."

"Some, yeah," Hugo said.

"How so?"

"Er, well, I don't know, it was really important for me to be in Gryffindor, because of how they'd been, you know, brave…"

"What about you, Rose?"

"I don't know if I was ever worried about being in Gryffindor," she said. "I don't really remember that well… but I think when things started happening at school in my first year I wanted to get involved, that might be because of my family and everything."

Jacob nodded and said, "That brings me to the next question: Do you think your parents' legacy is the reason Theodore Nott seems fixated on you? Al said you had fought him more than anyone else, why do you think that is?"

Rose hesitated. "I don't think I'm allowed to talk about that," she said. "It might get into classified information." She knew for certain that it would, but didn't want to give him full license to speculate.

"Okay… which of your parents would each of you say you're more like?"

"Hugo's definitely like Dad," Rose said, and she noticed him sit up a little straighter even as he rolled his eyes. "He's really willing to stand up for other people all the time. I think I'm more like my mum, though."

"Because of your academic career?"

"Yeah, I suppose—and I've just always thought of myself as more like her. Though I suppose I am a bit more hotheaded than her sometimes."

"Are either of you going to follow in their footsteps?" Jacob asked.

"No, definitely not. I'm not sure what I want to do yet," Hugo said. "I'm thinking about university, now that I could…"

"Okay, brilliant…" Jacob said, nodding, "And Rose? Any plans to run for office?"

"Er, I don't know about that, but I am planning to go into government work or activism," Rose said.

"Right, you're already quite the activist, aren't you?" he said. "You and your cousin Lucy were the most public advocates for integration."

"Well, along with the rest of the Modernist Association, and the Progressive Union, if it weren't for Bella Pinkstone or Claire Tyler or any of the rest of the people I've worked with I don't think we'd be speaking right now."

"Nevertheless, your essays were instrumental in shaping public opinion, right? Do you see yourself as a kind of liaison for the magical community?"

"I don't think that's—I don't have any plans to continue that kind of work right now, the war is sort of dominating my time."

"You're a member of the Order of the Phoenix, correct?"

"Yes," Rose said.

"Can you tell me anything about what you do for them?"

"That's confidential, sorry."

"What about you, Hugo?"

"I'm not old enough, we have to be of age."

Jacob looked confused. "Well, Rose is 17."

"17 is of age in the wizarding world," Rose said.

"Okay, thanks for clearing that up… do the two of you like that your mother's the Minister?"

"Er… it's been an adjustment, but I think she's the best person for the position," Rose said.

"So you don't mind the extra security, or the media attention?" he asked, smiling a little.

"That's sort of always been part of being in our family," Hugo said, shrugging.

"Okay…so your political beliefs. Do your parents share them? I know you're both part of the Modernists, are your parents supportive of that?"

"For the most part, our beliefs are the same," Rose said, hoping he wouldn't inquire any further, thinking of her father's reaction to her and Scorpius.

He did. "What do you disagree on?"

"I don't think we disagree as much as there's… a generational divide, even within ideologies… I think people who have been through war have a difficult time readjusting… my parents are extremely accepting people but sometimes individually they have histories with other people that we don't."

"Are you referring to anyone in particular?"

"Rose is dating a former Death Eater's son," Hugo blurted out, and Rose glared at him while he grinned evilly. Jacob practically jumped out of his seat and checked to make absolutely sure his phone was recording.

"Could I have a name?"

Rose sighed. He'd get it from the Prophet eventually anyway. "Scorpius Malfoy. But he isn't at all like—his parents both work for the Order now and he's part of the Modernists."

"I'm sorry, could you spell that? And you said your parents disapprove, then?"

"Like scorpion, but with a 'us' at the end, and then M-a-l-f-o-y," she said. "And it—it took them a little while to come around."

"So this is serious, then?" he asked, and Rose turned pink when his eyes zeroed in on the ring on the chain around her neck.

"Er, we've been seeing each other for about a year and a half," she said.

"Okay, well, unless either of you has something else extremely interesting to talk about I think that'll do," Jacob said, shaking their hands. "The issue will be out next Friday. Thanks for doing this."

"No problem," Rose said, putting an effort into smiling, and turned to Hugo as the reporter left. "Did you have to?"

"It was funny," Hugo said, giggling. "And besides, he would've found out anyway, this way you at least get to comment."

"Whatever, we should go back," Rose sighed. She had a Wolf Project assignment that night; the backlash by Nott and other extreme traditionalists had expanded the protected population at Hogwarts considerably, and she knew for a fact that even some high-profile Order members were going into hiding tonight, not just Muggles and Muggleborns. There had been a large attack on Valentine's Day that had wounded three Order members, though they had captured two Followers as a result. They were low in rank, however, and interrogating them hadn't told the Order anything they didn't already know. There was one incident that had disturbed Rose more than anything else, though; there was a shooting outside of the Woolworth building that had injured two MACUSA workers, and the shooter was a Muggle. She couldn't help the creeping feeling of guilt whenever she thought about it.

That night at midnight, she and Scorpius entered the Shrieking Shack to find James standing with no less than eight people. Rose quickly recognized many of them—Fabian Wolpert, their Squib cousin, was there, and Seamus Finnigan, as well as Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy. Scorpius changed back to human form and stared at his parents. "We… didn't know you were coming."

"There were too many threats. The Order thought it was easier to protect us this way," Mr. Malfoy said.

"Same here," Mr. Finnigan said, as Rose changed too. The other couple standing near the wall approached them, looking somewhat nervous.

"Er, I'm Siobhan McGonagall, this is my husband Henry," the woman said, and Rose smiled, noticing the similarities.

"You're Arya's parents," she said, nodding. "Rose Weasley."

"Really?" One of the two last people she didn't know, a very small and wrinkled old woman, exclaimed, and hurried over to them at a faster pace than Rose would have thought possible and shook her hand vigorously. "Nice job, young lady."

"Er, thank you, ma'am," Rose said, glancing back at Scorpius and James in confusion.

"I'm Carlotta Pinkstone," she said, seeming to sense their confusion. "And my son Ben. My granddaughter made too much noise, I suppose. No such thing, of course, but you know how these people are."

"You're… Carlotta Pinkstone?" Rose asked, her eyes widening. "The integration activist from the 50s?"

"Yes, the very same, and I know how old I am, dear," she said. "Shall we go?"

"Bye, James," Rose said. "By the way, when will we see you in Vogue?"

Scorpius snickered but James just grinned. "The people want what they want, Rosie. See you," he said, and Disapparated. Scorpius and Rose changed back to their Animagi and led the group to the Hog's Head and through the passageway. When they were settled, Rose waited at a polite distance while Scorpius talked to his parents before they left the Room of Requirement.

"Apparently one of their security detail is in St. Mungo's now, there was an attempted attack at their last safe house," Scorpius said as they walked back to the Prefect commons. "Can't say I blame them for wanting to come here. Though I'm definitely going to be seeing more of them than I really want to."

"Are they okay?" Rose asked.

"Yeah, they're fine."

"What about you?" she asked.

"I'm okay," he said, nodding. "Really. They're safe and I really won't have to see them _every_ day."

"Okay," Rose said. "You don't look okay is all."

"Well… I wish we could be doing more. I know, not until the connection's broken… but I just want it to happen already. I need to fight, it's bigger than me, don't you feel that?"

"I do," Rose said quietly. "But we are doing something."

"Yeah, I know," he said, and they walked the rest of the way without talking. Rose was starting to feel at peace again by the time they reached the Prefect commons, until they opened the door and saw Professor Rudomin waiting inside. Rose's stomach dropped and she instinctively grabbed Scorpius's hand as the professor walked up to them, his expression solemn.

"Er, Rose, could we talk alone?" he asked.

Rose panicked even more and managed to say, "Whatever you're telling me you can tell him."

Rudomin hesitated before saying, "All right, then. You might want to sit down."

She felt her stomach churn and, while sitting down on the sofa with Scorpius, asked, "…Who's dead?"

"No one," he said gently, which made her feel a tiny bit better but not much. "It's… your mother." She had figured as much. "She was at a public event, and someone… well, they had a knife."

"Where is she?"

"They took her to St. Mungo's first, but it wasn't spell damage so she's at a Muggle hospital in London. She's in surgery now." Rudomin looked sympathetic but Rose hardly cared. "It'll be hours before they know anything—the doctors said they were optimistic but we haven't heard anything since she went in."

"When can I…?"

"We aren't sure yet. I can let you know in the morning…"

"No, I… can I stay here so you can come tell me if you find out something?" Rose asked. It wasn't really a question and Rudomin seemed to get that.

"Sure. I… I'm sorry, Rose. I'll come back when I know something." The professor left the room and Rose's head was pounding, this couldn't be happening…

"Rose, I'm so sorry."

"This is my fault," she managed before the tears spilled over and she started to cry intensely, more than she had for the past two years probably. The guilty feeling from the American shooting was back in full force and now felt completely debilitating. Scorpius was holding her, but she barely registered it, and continued to sob for she didn't know how long.

"It's not your fault," he said, "of course it isn't, and your mum doesn't think that either."

"It is," Rose managed to protest. "She should if she doesn't."

"Rose, you didn't make that man stab anyone."

"He wouldn't even know about…if it weren't for me…"

"I know you don't believe me, but I'll just keep saying it's not your fault." When she finally stopped crying, she realized she was exhausted, and Scorpius grabbed a blanket from the other sofa for her.

"I don't care what Rudomin thinks, please stay," she said, her voice coming out hoarse and barely above a whisper.

"Always." He wrapped the blanket around both of them and she put her head on his shoulder.

"I'm so scared, Scorpius," she finally whispered some minutes later. "I just… no one's safe."

"I'm sorry," he said, and put his arm around her. "I'm scared too. We'll make it through this."

Rose didn't know how to respond; she wasn't sure she believed him. So she settled for just closing her eyes and waiting to fall asleep.


	15. The Hospital Visit

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading, I really appreciate it! Another chapter will be out Sunday. Please review and I hope you like the chapter! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 15

THE HOSPITAL VISIT

Rose woke up that morning before Scorpius and was initially concerned that they hadn't been woken up, meaning her mother's situation hadn't changed. She didn't know much about how Muggle surgery worked, but she thought it had taken a worryingly long time. She looked over at Scorpius then and smiled a little to herself, despite everything that was going on. She loved him, she knew she did, and deeply too, there was no escaping it. She wished the circumstances under which she had woken up next to him were different. She started to think too much about the war and how she could and possibly even probably would lose him any day. It disturbed her so she woke him up, and they went to breakfast together. Before long, Professor Rudomin appeared in the Great Hall and told them that Rose's mother was stable but wouldn't be awake for a while. Determined not to look weak, and perhaps to abate her guilt, Rose insisted on attending all her classes that day, though Hugo was nowhere to be found. All of her cousins were treating her rather fragilely, as was Scorpius, which irritated the part of her that wanted to act as if everything was normal. She sat through Muggle Studies and Charms without issue, though she knew she wasn't really listening. She was suspiciously quiet at lunch, she knew, which only further worried Al and Scorpius, and Potions was a blur to her. By Transfiguration, she was having an annoyingly difficult time with Vanishing spells during their NEWT review time. "This is fourth year magic, why can't I do it?" she finally exclaimed.

"We're doing it nonverbally this time," Al said gently. "And you're probably thinking about… other things."

"My mum's okay, I don't know why it would affect me," Rose snapped, and saw to her great annoyance that Al and Scorpius shared a look when she returned to staring at her matchbox and willing it to become a bird.

"Rose, McGonagall said you could take a break," Scorpius suggested, and she threw her wand down in exasperation.

"Please stop babying me," she said, and immediately sighed. "Sorry."

"It's okay," he said. "Have you heard anything else?" McGonagall emerged from her classroom office then and hurried over to their table.

"Looks like I'm about to," Rose said uneasily.

"Miss Weasley, that was the hospital. Your mother is expected to wake very soon, if you would like to see her—" Rose was already standing up and grabbing her bag, and Scorpius stood up too. "Ah, Mr. Malfoy, the visitors must be family only at this stage."

Scorpius sat down, looking put out, and asked Rose, "Will you be okay?"

"Hugo will be with me," Rose said.

"I'll go," Al said, standing up eagerly. "Can I, Professor?"

"Yes, very well," McGonagall said. "Er, do let me know how she is and tell her she is in my thoughts. Professor Rudomin will help you leave the castle."

"Thank you, Professor," Rose said, and she and Al hurried out of the room ignoring the stares of their classmates. Rudomin was waiting outside with Hugo, who looked nervous and uncomfortable, and walked them to the edge of the Apparition boundaries before giving them the name of the hospital. Rose took Hugo with her and they all within seconds were in the hospital lobby. The receptionist jumped about half a foot when they arrived.

"Goodness, I'll never get used to that," she exclaimed. "Names?"

"Rose Weasley, Hugo Weasley, Albus Potter," Rose said quickly. "We're here to see my—the Minister."

"Right," the woman said, her eyes widening a little. "Er, room 209, I think there might be some press outside, just so you know."

"Thank you," Rose said, and they hurried to the elevator and rushed down the hallway into their mother's room, where security was thankfully keeping the reporters at a distance. They found Rose's dad sitting at the side of the bed when they walked in, along with a nurse, and he looked up quickly when they entered.

"Good, you're here," he said. "Thanks for coming, too, Al." He looked completely exhausted, his hair and clothes a mess and he clearly hadn't shaved in the last two days; Rose suspected he hadn't left at all. "She should be waking up soon, they said." Rose stared at her mother, bandaged around her middle, her skin pale and her arm attached to an IV, and felt like she might be sick. Hugo was standing stoically still, barely even blinking, and Al was watching them, concerned. She knew, no matter what anyone said, that intrinsically this was her fault. She didn't care if Scorpius didn't think so or the whole world for that matter. She would never be so careless again.

After only a few minutes that felt like forever, her mother coughed and her eyes fluttered open. Rose's dad gripped her hand tightly and said, "Hermione, it's me."

"Ron?" she mumbled after a moment. "What…"

"You were attacked," he said.

"I… I remember," she said, her eyes flying open, and she tried to sit up before Rose's dad gently stopped her. He was welling up with tears, something Rose had hardly ever seen.

"It's okay, you're okay," he said. "God, I was so worried…"

"Do the kids know?" she asked.

"We're right here, Mum," Hugo said, and their mother looked over at them and smiled.

"Oh, honey, come here, I'm okay," she said, and they both moved closer, Rose more hesitantly.

"I'm sorry," she said, and her mother shook her head.

"What are you apologizing for?" she asked. "I'm fine, this wasn't… this was just some crazy person." She looked around and finally noticed the nurse. "Where… am I?"

"You're at Bart's," the nurse said. "You sustained five stab wounds, Madam Minister, we performed reparative surgery and everything looks all right."

"Oh," she said, sounding relieved. "Okay, well, how long do you think it will take before I can go back to work?"

The nurse hesitated. "Well, I'm not a doctor, ma'am, but you'll need to rest for a while."

"I have a war to fight," she said, sighing, and laid back against the pillow again. "Ron, could you call John?"

"I did, he's keeping the office running," Rose's dad said. "Burns was acting Minister but he should be stepping down now, there'll be staff flooding in here any moment, I'm sure." Sure enough, there was a loud crack in the hallway and Killian Wallace, their mother's assistant came running in. "Like I said."

"Madam Minister," he said, sighing in relief. "I'm glad to see you're okay."

"That's for me, isn't it?" Rose's mum asked, eyeing the large folder of papers he was carrying.

"Er, yes, ma'am," he said.

"Is the… the D.o.M. thing, is the full report in there?" her mother asked, looking at Rose and Al hesitantly. Rose was curious, she knew D.o.M. was Department of Mysteries; had they found something?

"Not yet, ma'am, someone should be coming here soon to brief you."

Her mother sighed. "This is going to be a real problem. I need to be in the office, I have so much to do…" Rose backed out into the hallway, unable to take any more. Al followed her out and stopped her halfway down the hall.

"You have to stop blaming yourself," he said. Rose hesitated before hugging him and she started to cry again; Al hugged her back and they stood like that in the hallway for what felt like a very long time before the door to her mother's room opened.

"Are you two okay?" Hugo asked hesitantly.

"Yeah," Rose said, wiping her eyes and taking a deep breath. "I'm okay."

"Okay," he said, "Well, Mum's worried." Rose followed him back into the room, not wanting to exacerbate her mother's worries, but just as they entered they heard an ambulance speeding across the parking lot towards the emergency room.

"That can't be good," her mother said.

"I'm just glad you're safe," Rose's dad said. Less than a minute later, however, the TV in the corner of the room broke into the daytime programming it was playing and the local anchorman appeared.

"Breaking news, we're receiving word that magical activist Lucy Weasley has been transported to a hospital in London after an attack at a symposium this morning."

"Oh my god," Rose's mum said, and turned up the volume as they all watched the broadcast.

"Weasley is apparently in stable condition, but the extent of her injuries are not yet known…"

"That ambulance must have been her," Al said, and Rose glanced at her mother anxiously, trying to decide whether to go.

"You go, find out if she's okay," her mother said, and Rose was out the door first, followed quickly by Al and Hugo, and they ran to the lobby where they ran into Bella and Will.

"Is she—" Rose started to ask.

"She's probably fine," Bella said. "She keeps saying she is, it's mostly for observation. They're going to call a Healer to see about spell damage…"

"Where is she?" Rose asked.

"Come on," Bella said, and they followed them down the ground floor hallway to one of the emergent rooms, where they found Lucy sitting up in a bed with a doctor taking her vitals.

"Hey," she said weakly when they came in. Rose noticed a bruise on her face but otherwise, her cousin looked alright. "I'm really okay, they just insisted on the ambulance when I fainted."

"You fainted?" Rose asked, the concern evident in her voice, and Lucy sighed.

"Well, yeah," she said. "I was speaking and the guy knocked me down and I fell on the podium, he Stunned me but Bella Disarmed him and knocked him out. He's in custody, they think it was just a blood purist, probably not a real Follower."

"Don't you have security?" Al asked.

"Yeah, but he snuck in through the audience… he was dressed like a Muggle, there was no way to tell."

"That's scary," Hugo said gravely, and Lucy nodded. The doctor finished and left, leaving the door open.

"They're just worried about internal bleeding or whatever, I have to stay here for a while. I don't like it, I'm sure there's a media frenzy already."

"Sort of, yeah," Rose admitted. Just then, there were footsteps down the hall and Ava ran into the room, breathing heavily and looking frazzled. She saw Lucy and her eyes widened, brimming with tears.

"Oh, thank god," she breathed. "You're okay."

Lucy looked stunned, as Rose was sure the rest of them did as well. "I… yes."

"Lucy…" Ava breathed, starting to cry, "I just saw the news… I thought you were going to die or something."

"I'm not, I'm okay," Lucy said. Ava was keeping a calculated distance but they were both crying now and Rose sensed it wouldn't last. "Ava, you shouldn't be here."

"I don't care," she said. "I really, really don't. You could have died, and I should have been there, I should have—""You couldn't have done anything," Lucy said. "You're… Ava, you're safer—""That's crap and I don't care anyway," she said. "I love you, Lucy, more than anything, I can't stand being without you and I can't leave you again." Rose felt as if she shouldn't be watching this, and she sensed she wasn't the only one, as Hugo was inching towards the door.

"I love you, too," Lucy said, still crying, "but…"

"You can't convince me," Ava said. "I know you want me to stay."

"I do," Lucy finally said. "Want you to stay." Ava crossed the room and kissed her, and Hugo led the way as they all moved out into the hallway.

"Finally," Bella muttered.

"Do you think they mean it?" Rose asked.

"Probably. I know Lucy's been acting distant but those two are for real," she said. "Almost as bad as you and Malfoy. But anyway, how's your mum?"

"She's better, she's awake and in recovery," Rose said. "We should probably go back. Let us know if anything changes." Rose, Al, and Hugo went back up to their floor to find their father sitting outside. "Dad?"

"There's an Unspeakable in there with your mum," he said. "We can't go in yet. Is Lucy okay?"

"Yes, actually, she's probably fine," Rose said. "Just a precaution, mostly." She hesitated before asking, "Is the Department of Mysteries meeting about the connection?"

Her dad shrugged. "No one tells me anything, I'm just the First Wizard." Several minutes later, the door opened and they were let back inside, while a silent, tall and gaunt man exited.

"What was that about?" Rose asked.

"How's Lucy?" her mother asked. Her smile looked forced.

"Totally fine," Rose said. "What's going on?"

Her mother's smile disappeared. "The Department of Mysteries says they've found a solution to the connection. If Scorpius can get here soon, they can start tonight."


	16. The Department of Mysteries

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading! And thank you so much for your reviews, I really appreciate it! The next chapter will be up Wednesday. Enjoy! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 16

THE DEPARTMENT OF MYSTERIES

"Are you ready for this?" Scorpius asked them nervously in the Ministry lobby where they met him later that evening.

"I don't know, it's a little…" Rose trailed off, and he nodded.

"Yeah, I know," he said, and she moved to stand closer to him.

"I'm glad to be rid of it," Al said. "It hardly ever helped and I want to get back to the Order."

"The Unspeakable that told us said to meet him on the fifth floor, let's go," Rose's dad said, and he led the three of them into the lift. Rose didn't want to think about the implications of Al's statement; she knew realistically that he was probably going to leave school again, and from what she could tell Scorpius was about ready to drop out with him. The lift shook and rattled a little more than Rose was comfortable with, but glided inexplicably smoothly open as it announced, _Fifth Floor, Department of Mysteries._ The gaunt man from earlier was waiting in the middle of the hallway and Rose's dad looked around uneasily.

"I don't like this place. The last time I was here your granddad tried to kill me," he said, glancing at Scorpius and chuckling a little. "If anyone had told me… well, anyway. Evening," he called to the Unspeakable. The man simply nodded and gestured for them to follow him. "I think this is where I go. I'll be waiting in the lobby," he said nervously. "Just… be careful. These people are weird." Her father left, then, and Rose forced herself to walk forward despite her reservations. The man looked at each of the three of them one by one when they had reached him and then turned around and walked the other way. They walked after him hesitantly. Al entered their thoughts, sounding incredulous.

 _What the hell is going on?_

 _They're Unspeakables,_ Scorpius said. _They don't speak._

 _Do they have to be so bloody weird?_ Rose asked.

 _Hey, you two, this is the last time we get to be in each other's heads. Any last telepathic thoughts?_ Al asked.

The Unspeakable turned around abruptly and said, "Stop. It will hurt more if you do it."

"More?" Al whispered nervously.

"How did he know we were doing that?" Rose whispered back. "And why is he talking?"

"I think they just don't speak to anyone else," Scorpius replied. "We're part of the operation now."

"Lovely," Rose said, starting to get even more nervous as they progressed deeper into the department. They walked past a door swinging open, full of shelves with foggy blue orbs that Rose realized were prophecies. Almost as soon as she slowed to look, the Unspeakable turned around and looked at her sternly until she kept walking. She was beginning to think he was a Legilimens, nothing else could explain his omniscience. A few minutes later, they were led through a large metal door that shut firmly behind them. There was a single stone table and three chairs in the room, a cauldron on the table and another Unspeakable behind the cauldron. The two men nodded at each other and the second Unspeakable addressed them.

"Rose Weasley. Albus Potter. Scorpius Malfoy. Welcome."

"Can we get on with it or…?" Al asked, and Rose couldn't help but smile at the expression on the Unspeakable's face.

"…Yes. The potion is here. I will retrieve the proper portions and assist you." The Unspeakable turned his back to them and produced three goblets; the three of them sat at the chairs in front of the table. "It is an honor to meet you at last."

"Er, thank you," Rose said awkwardly. Letting her curiosity get the better of her, she asked, "Do you know anything about the prophecy about us?"

The Unspeakable looked up at them and said, "Yes. I know you will achieve power and end the war through sacrifice."

"Well, everyone who's heard it knows that," Rose said, getting annoyed now. "Will—will one of us die?"

"I do not know," he said.

"Are you lying?" she asked.

"We are not permitted to lie," he said, sharply, as if she'd insulted him. Rose looked at Al for a moment before nodding slowly. He ladled cups of a thick, black potion from the cauldron into the goblets and set them in front of each of them. "Drink."

"What is this?" Scorpius asked.

"We have created this potion for you," the Unspeakable said. "It has no name."

"And this will fix things?" Rose asked.

"The connection will no longer be a cause for concern."

"So it will be gone?" Al asked.

The Unspeakable looked at them and said, "Yes, you will not be able to communicate with each other."

"Well, then," Al said, and grabbed his goblet. Rose put out a hand to stop him.

"What's in this? I mean, what's going to happen when we drink it?"

"Nothing permanent," the Unspeakable said simply, and turned and walked out of the room. "Drink," he added as he closed the door. Scorpius looked at Rose and Al in alarm. "Er, what the hell was that?"

"I don't know, they're odd, it's sort of their thing," Al said. "I vote we drink it. We don't really have another option, anyway. Even if the war ended no problem, what if I have a heart attack at 43 and you both go down with me?"

"Al's right, this is our only chance," Rose said.

"Look at it though," Scorpius said, eyeing the black liquid with unease. "It looks like Draught of Living Death. What if they're just trying to kill us?"

"But why would they do that?" Al asked. "They work for Rose's mum."

"Not technically," Rose said. "The Department of Mysteries was created as a semi-independent agency, a sort of experimental research body. With the advent of increased prophecy in the beginning of the 19th century—"

"Please, Rose," Al groaned.

"I only meant they aren't answerable to anyone but themselves unless a Wizengamot inquiry was launched," Rose said, starting to feel a little uneasy about the whole thing.

"Which would happen if they killed us," Al reasoned. "Let's just drink it and get it over with. I want to go back to the Order."

"But why is this the only way?" Scorpius argued. "Someone we can trust more might come up with something tomorrow."

"They delegated to the D.o.M., no one else is trying," Rose said.

"And really, what would we say? That we didn't like how it looked?" Al added.

Scorpius shook his head. "I don't like that they wouldn't give us a straight answer. How do we even know exactly what it will do?"

"We don't," Al said. "But it doesn't matter. We have to drink it."

"Rose," Scorpius said. "You heard what Podmore said. The Department of Mysteries has its own agenda and we have no way of knowing what it is. We aren't sure we should trust the ordinary Ministry, let alone the Unspeakables. Why should we trust them?"

"Why should we trust Podmore?" Rose replied, but she was starting to feel like he was right. Either way, it didn't matter. "We have to try, Scorpius. You said yourself you wanted to fight."

"You're the one who asked me not to," he argued.

"I never asked you that. I would never ask that, I know how important it is to you."

"No, but you did, it's obvious you don't want me to. And you don't want me to be an Auror," he said. "You're always telling me to be careful. That's what I'm trying to do."

"If you want to help the Order, if you want to live through this war, if you want any kind of future at all, we have to drink it," Rose told him. They stared at each other, Rose knowing there was a lot going unsaid. Finally, he looked away and nodded.

"On three?" Al asked, and Scorpius looked as if he was going to say something but then closed his mouth and looked down. "All right then. One, two, three." They all downed the goblets at once, Rose coughing at the vile taste of the potion. After a few moments, she started to feel faint and all of a sudden a great weight felt as if it was pulling her down into unconsciousness. She vaguely noticed that she was falling off of her chair, and the boys were doing the same, before her eyes closed of their own accord. At first, everything was black, and silent, but she was still hyperaware of everything though unable to move. She started to panic, is this what death felt like? It almost felt like the paralysis that the storm hags had brought on when they'd loomed over her bed during fifth year, but worse as nothing at all felt familiar. Eventually, she felt as if she was falling and was jolted into blinding brightness. She soon realized that she was standing in a train station, though it was completely white, and had just barely seen two figures very far away on the platform before the station was gone and she now saw just flashes: of the Resurrection Stone lying on the ground, in what she thought was the Forbidden Forest; then of Hogwarts, Hogwarts was burning; and then she was in the Great Hall, and saw a sudden burst of magic, connecting and twisting together in beams of red and green light, that Rose had never seen anything like, produced by two figures Rose couldn't make out. Then the scene shifted and the first figure lay on the ground, and standing over him was James, at least she thought it was, until she looked closer and saw that his hair was darker, and the scar on his forehead, redder and deeper than Rose had ever seen it, told her it must be Uncle Harry. Suddenly Uncle Harry was gone and Rose saw herself in the same position, with someone she couldn't see lying at her feet, but she was on a cobblestone street; both she and Uncle Harry were holding two wands. Everything changed again and she was in the forest, watching some distant figure being struck with a flash of green light, a high, cold voice shouting " _Avada Kedavra!_ ". The last image hit her briefly—someone running towards a great body of people, down a narrow path, or was it a corridor? Then the scene became engulfed in flames and Rose emerged from the dream into a hospital room. Her senses returned and she realized she had screamed. She was breathing heavily, and she looked down to see an IV in her arm and her clothes replaced with a hospital gown. Before she knew it, there was a nurse running into the room.

"You're all right, dear," she said soothingly. "You're in St. Mungo's."

"I… what?" Rose mumbled. Her head felt like it would burst, and she touched her forehead and felt that she was sweating. "Where're Scorpius and Al?"

"They're just down the hall," she said. Rose started to sit up, but the nurse flew to the side of the bed and said quickly, "You shouldn't get up yet."

"I have to…" she started to say, but she didn't want to say in front of her. _I have to ask if they had the same dream, or vision, or whatever it was_.

"Your family is here, I'll find them," the nurse said. "You stay here and rest." The nurse left and Rose laid back down on the bed, her thoughts spinning rapidly. She had a vague idea that much of what she had seen had something to do with Uncle Harry and Voldemort. She wasn't sure what any of it had to do with her, or what the first or last parts of it were. She had to know if she was the only one who'd seen it, and if Al and Scorpius had, did they know what it meant?

 _Did you see something when you blacked out?_ she started to think, but realized they wouldn't be able to hear her. She felt a wave of relief as she remembered that at least, whatever she had seen, they would no longer be connected. The added danger the connection had brought was finally gone. Or was it? Her unease started to grow as she remembered the Unspeakable's unsettling conversation with them. What did he mean when he said it would "no longer be a cause for concern"? That he hadn't said outright the connection was gone worried Rose. What was he hiding? He said he wasn't allowed to lie, and she thought she believed him, but she really had no idea if that was true. She knew almost nothing about the Department of Mysteries, because that was the way they had always operated, in complete secrecy. It worried her now, especially after what she had seen. He had said he knew things, probably much more than he was letting on, about the prophecy. She wanted to speak to him, to try to make him tell her more, but she knew that she couldn't. She didn't even know his name and she had no way of finding out, let alone going to the Department herself. But no one else knew anything more. Except possibly…

"Rose, thank Merlin," her father exclaimed when he entered the room, followed by Uncle Harry.

"Is Al awake?" she asked. "And Scorpius?"

"I'm not sure about Scorpius, but Al is," Uncle Harry said.

"Did he say anything about a dream?" Rose asked urgently. Rose's father and Uncle Harry shared a look. "What?"

"Al was talking about something like that, but he wasn't making much sense. The Department told us one of the symptoms was a fever, you may have been hallucinating," Uncle Harry told her.

"No, that wasn't—it wasn't like that, you have to believe me. I saw you," she told her uncle. "Fighting Voldemort. Your spells were connected or something, and I saw Hogwarts burning and… I need to talk to Al," she said, starting to get upset when they didn't respond.

"Did you say you saw…?" Uncle Harry asked, sounding surprised. "I'm not sure what you saw, Rose, but I think it's probably just your subconscious…"

Rose knew if that didn't convince him, nothing would. She knew what she had to do. "I want to speak with Zephyr Podmore."


	17. A Visit to Azkaban

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading, please review, I really appreciate it! Next chapter will be up on Sunday; I'll be posting twice a week from now on. Enjoy! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 17

A VISIT TO AZKABAN

Rose didn't like Azkaban; she never had. The looming shadow of the tall, narrow building was threatening even now, long after the infamous specter of dementors had been removed. Silently thanking her uncle Percy for his only worthwhile contribution she could think of to the wizarding world, she walked through the main gates alone, leaving her father who'd taken her there standing just outside. When the doors opened to the entrance hall, she stopped briefly as she remembered the battle at the end of last year. This was where she had fought with an Imperiused Al, where Kingsley Shacklebolt had died, where Uncle Harry had fought Nott for the Elder Wand. It all seemed so unimportant to her. She couldn't see how Nott was willing to burn down everything around him for something like a wand. Despite the prophecy, she didn't want the power it spoke of. From what she'd seen, she didn't want to see what happened to her or anyone else when they achieved it.

The guard Azkaban had assigned to her led her up to the high-security level, which was when Rose began to be nervous. "He's at the end on the left, there," the guard said. "I'll take you there. Just keep looking forward." Rose realized that everyone she was about to walk past most likely wanted to kill her, and therefore took the guard's advice as they walked down the hallway. Her weak state didn't allow her to hurry, but she tried to walk as quickly as she could while she tuned out the shouts and laughter she could hear coming from the surrounding cells. When they reached Podmore's cell, the guard opened the door for her and she took a deep breath before walking inside, her head held high in a pretend show of confidence.

The former leader of the Order of the Cobra looked up from where he sat on the floor and smiled. "Have you finally come to seek help?"

"I've come for knowledge," she replied. Her knees were shaking a little; she'd been given a tonic for strength by the Healers when she left the hospital against their judgement, but she knew she was ready to crash any moment.

"Sit down," Podmore told her. "You look faint."

"You're not exactly the picture of health," she muttered as she sat on the floor across from him. He looked thinner than when she last saw him, and his eyes appeared sunken and tired.

"Such is the consequence of my actions," he said. "Why have you come?"

"The Department of Mysteries gave us a potion to end the connection," Rose said.

"Is it gone?" he asked.

"Yes," Rose said. "I mean, we can't communicate anymore."

"Good," he said, nodding. "That's good."

"But when I took it, I saw… well, I'm not really sure what I saw," she said. "I saw my uncle fighting Voldemort, and I saw myself standing over someone…"

"Nott?"

"I don't know, I couldn't see."

Podmore closed his eyes and sighed. "What else did you see?"

"The Resurrection Stone… Hogwarts burning… and someone using the Killing Curse—I was seeing the Battle of Hogwarts, wasn't I?"

"It seems possible."

Rose hesitated. "My uncle said it could have just been a side effect, hallucinations."

"But you don't believe that," Podmore said. "Or you wouldn't be here."

"Do you think he's right?" she asked.

"I think it's a side effect," he said, "but I wouldn't call it a hallucination."

"A vision, then?"

"Maybe. Maybe not. Visions are of the future. You saw the past."

"But I also saw myself. And… there was something else, I saw—one man facing an army. And then fire." Rose was starting to feel sick again. "So it was the future and the past?"

"It was a possible future," Podmore said. "But it may not be true. It could be what the Unspeakables wanted you to see."

"Do you think the potion is dangerous?" Rose asked. "Should we not have taken it?"

"I wouldn't imagine the Department of Mysteries would intentionally harm the Minister's daughter, or Harry Potter's son."

"You said yourself the Department had its own agenda," Rose said. "But why? What do they have to gain?"

"They often share our views about fate and prophecy," Podmore said, almost shrugging. "I would suggest learning about the Department yourself."

Rose nodded slowly. "I could probably do that. One more thing, though. You said there was another prophecy coming. About us?"

"Very soon now, I imagine," he said.

"Do you know anything about what it would say?"

Podmore sighed. "If my predictions are correct… then yes."

"Then tell me," Rose said, trying not to sound desperate.

"I won't," he said, very matter-of-factly to Rose's chagrin.

"You just said it was about me," she protested.

"I don't approve of relaying prophecies to those for whom they are intended."

Rose looked at him in disbelief. "If it's my destiny, telling me won't change anything."

"Maybe not. Or maybe it would change everything. I don't presume to know."

Rose stood up then and shook her head. "Thank you," she muttered, and turned to go.

"Rose," he said, and she stopped in spite of her desire to leave. "Do you have the other Hallows?"

She turned back around, admittedly curious. "No. Why?"

"It might be prudent to retrieve them," he said. "Before Nott does. It is impossible to tell what the original prophecy meant by possession."

Rose shook her head. "I don't think we can—Al's cloak is hidden somewhere with the Order and the Stone is with McGonagall." Rose thought for a moment that she shouldn't have told him that but then again, it wasn't as if he was going anywhere and if he did, he was estranged from his Order.

"I'm confident you'll be able to manage it," Podmore said. "Goodbye, Rose Weasley; by all means, visit again if you feel the need." He seemed to immediately lose interest in her then, looking out his window pensively. Rose turned and left the cell trying to seem aloof despite the weight of what she'd heard and her spinning head. She made it down the high security hallway in Azkaban into the stairwell before she had to sit down, and the guard walking behind her stopped in alarm.

"Are you alright?" she asked, sounding tense. Rose nodded.

"I just need a minute," she said, her voice weak, and before long she managed enough strength to make it down the stairs to the entrance hall and outside to her father. "Let's go," she said quickly, and her father looked at her, concerned.

"Are you going to be okay Apparating?" he asked her, and she nodded, though she was sure she wasn't a very convincing sight. "Just hold on to me, okay? Just to make me feel better." Rose sighed and held on to her dad's arm, bracing herself, before he Disapparated. When they reached St. Mungo's, she was very nearly ready to vomit, and very slowly made her way back to her room. Al and Scorpius were there, and stood up quickly when she arrived.

"Bloody hell, thank Merlin you're all right, but that was really stupid," Scorpius said, practically stumbling over the words and rushing to her side as she tried to manage her symptoms sitting on the edge of the bed.

"I've got her," her dad said gruffly, and Scorpius backed away just enough for him to help her sit against the pillows at the head of the bed. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Dad, thanks," she said, trying to imply she wanted privacy, and he seemed to understand, though he didn't look happy.

"All right, I'll see you in a minute," he said, and left the room hesitantly. Rose was sure he was standing right outside, but was still glad to have the room. Immediately, Scorpius was back at her side, and Al stood up too.

"Did you see what I saw? When we blacked out?" Rose asked them.

"Yes," Al said grimly. "Well—I saw a lot of things, my dad and Voldemort…"

"And Hogwarts," Scorpius added. "And… you," he said, looking at her, and Rose felt the dread returning. "What did Podmore say?"

"Not much," Rose said. "He thinks the other prophecy will come soon. And that we should research the Department."

Scorpius groaned. "I suppose I've just got to accept that I'm going to fail my NEWTs."

"He thinks the vision could be true, but also maybe not—it was pretty confusing," Rose admitted.

"You shouldn't have gone there without us," Al said. "Especially not right now—I mean, look at you, we're both fine now but you've made it worse."

"I know. Actually, I'd really like to sleep," she said, and he nodded.

"We'll leave you alone, then. Come on, Scorpius," Al said, and the other boy reluctantly stepped away again.

"Don't do that again," Scorpius said, managing to smile, but Rose knew he was serious.

"I don't think I could," she mumbled, and Al laughed as they left the room and Rose laid down, exhausted. The hospital insisted on keeping the three of them for observation overnight, but they were cleared to leave in the early morning, and while Rose and Scorpius were going back to school, Al wouldn't.

"Are you really sure about this? Just a few more months and you'd have your NEWTs," Rose said to him in the hospital lobby. Al waved her off.

"This is what I need to do," he said. Rose nodded.

"I know." They hugged, and then he turned to Scorpius.

"See you, mate," he said. Scorpius smiled.

"I wish I could go with you," he said, and Rose looked at the floor, trying to hide her dislike for the idea. They hugged quickly.

"I'll let you guys know when there's a battle we could use help with," he said. He turned back to Rose and Scorpius hung back as she walked him to the door. "I'll make sure it's something easy. It won't be dangerous but maybe it'll make him feel better." Al smiled shyly. "I don't want you two to have issues over this war, or me, for that matter."

Rose smiled. "Thank you." She remembered what she'd heard from Podmore and added, "Al? Try to get the Invisibility Cloak back, if you can. Just trust me."

Al looked at her, a little confused, but nodded. "Er, sure, I'll try. Shouldn't be too hard, I think my dad's probably just got it in his office."

"Okay. Good. Write me more often than you did before, okay? I'll miss you," she said. He smiled.

"Sure. See you later, Rose." Al walked out of the hospital and Rose returned to Scorpius's side. They Disapparated back to Hogsmeade soon after and made it to the castle for the last half hour of breakfast.

"Hey, you aren't dead," Hugo said cheerily when they sat down where he was sitting with Roxanne and Min.

"Thanks for the concern," Rose said, rolling her eyes, and helped herself to several pieces of toast, suddenly realizing she was starving. "What did we miss?"

"Well, everyone freaked out last night, I don't know if you saw it. The U.S. pledged military aid, but only to MACUSA, not the ICW," Min told them.

"That's brilliant!" Rose exclaimed. "Well, it'd be better if they were going to fight everywhere, but still."

"Yeah, basically Nott's presence in the U.S. will probably disappear, but unless other Muggle governments do the same there's not much that'll change for us," Roxanne said.

"They're calling for Britain to follow them," Hugo said. "But there's been no response."

"They'll join," Rose said confidently. "They have to."

"You should speak, Rose," Roxanne said. "Seriously. It's helped before, and everyone knows who you are."

"To Parliament?" Rose asked, her voice coming out much higher than normal. "Er, I'll think about it."

"So what happened?" Hugo asked. "Is your mind thing gone?"

"We're pretty sure," Rose said, nodding.

"So what happens now?" Min asked. "You fight Nott?"

"I suppose, yeah," Rose said. She looked over at Scorpius, who took her hand and smiled, though it looked a little forced. Although she knew it meant they were safer than before, her anxiety only grew when she couldn't see anything from him when he did.


	18. The Battle on the Border

**Hi everyone! I'm really sorry I'm a day late, I'll try not to let it happen again but I was really busy yesterday (I was at a protest, so I'm sure most of my characters would understand) and I didn't have time to edit. Next chapter will be up Thursday! Thank you so much for reading, and please review! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 18

THE BATTLE ON THE BORDER

7-3-2024

Hey Rose,

It was great to hear from you. Things are good here, I can't tell you much in a letter but I'm working scouting missions now, and it's been great. I really love getting away from everything and just, I don't know, just helping. Does that make sense? Anyway, I heard you and Scorpius are getting a lot of influx in the Project, and it makes sense. Nott's getting really angry. I think he senses we're getting closer to finding his main base, and he knows we outnumber him if we do. From what we can tell, it seems like he's really trying to find that thing he thinks my dad made, remember? He's really crazed about it, according to our informant, he thinks it's the key to stopping us. The Order's perfectly fine with him thinking that, it distracts him so that's good. Also we've been getting some reports from our intelligence that Kendall's death might not have really been anything to do with the Followers—either that or it was only known about by the really important people. Speaking of the Ministry, some Order members are really angry that the D.o.M. broke our connection. They had been trying to talk McGonagall into using it for the Order. It's splitting people into sides, which I really don't like, but like I said, I don't spend a ton of time at headquarters. Anyway, tell Lily that James and I say hi and write back soon.

Al

16-3-2024

Hi Lucy,

Hey, I hope you're doing well. I heard Ava moved in with you guys, so you must still be safe, that's good. Scorpius and I have the Room practically bursting with people and it's getting more and more difficult keeping them happy. The news we're getting is mad, attacks and infighting everywhere and some Muggle governments imposing pretty strict rules about wands. I understand the fear, I suppose, but it's really hard to see how they don't understand we're different than the Followers. I'm sure most people do, it's just a little disheartening. I assume things are better in France, though, and I don't really know but it seems to be okay in Britain. I can't understand what Parliament is doing, though, not getting involved. A lot of people I've been talking to want you and I, or at least the Union, to speak in Parliament but I just don't know if that would help or hurt. What do you think? Write back soon.

Rose

Rose knew that she and Scorpius were spending an inordinate amount of time in the library, even for them, but even she was surprised to learn that day that it was already supper and they had wasted an entire day searching through books about Ministry history without any success. The Department of Mysteries remained, appropriately, a mystery to them, and it was clear to her now that the history of the agency was intentionally unknowable. All they had found was that it was created as an independent body in order to deal with new and unknown magical concepts and spells, as well as pushing the boundaries of what was considered the limitations of magical ability. Rose at first had expected alchemical dealings, since Podmore had said they shared many of the Order of the Cobra's beliefs, but they hadn't found anything of the kind. They had hardly found anything at all, but Rose wasn't ready to give up. She knew this could very well mean the difference between winning and losing the war, and for the three of them, between life and death. "Just let me finish looking through this one book and we can go eat," she told Scorpius, but looked up to find he wasn't looking at his own history book at all but at a much newer book called _Magical Communities and Neighborhoods of the Twenty-First Century._ "Er, Scorpius?"

"Sorry, it's just… we weren't finding anything," he confessed, "and I really don't want to go on living at Teddy and Victoire's."

"You're looking for a flat?" Rose asked, amused. "In… Worthinghall?"

"No, I just got distracted," he said, blushing a little. "It's got a dancing hippogriff festival. But look, this area of London is sort of near Whitehall, and it's got a high magical population."

"Well, it doesn't really matter anymore," Rose said.

"My name is Scorpius Malfoy," he said very seriously. "If I don't want to be laughed at, yes, it does." She laughed. "And besides, I'm sort of an obvious wizard, and in the wrong parts of London I'd probably get stabbed." Rose looked down, guilt eating at her again, and he closed his book. "Hey, I didn't mean it like that."

"It doesn't matter, it's true," she said quietly.

"Change happens slowly. You did the right thing," he said. "Anyway, I'm probably going to get a flat here. It'll be convenient to get to Auror training."

"Isn't this a little early?" Rose asked. "I mean, we have plenty of time to figure this out.""We graduate in three months, Rose," he said. "A little early, sure, but we have to start thinking about this stuff."

"I don't want to be an adult," Rose said, eyes widening in dread at the idea of paying rent and taxes and serious suits…

Scorpius laughed. "Me either, but I also don't want to be homeless."

"Yeah. I'll probably get one there, too, I'll be going to the Ministry too probably so… maybe with Min or something."

"Well, that'd be a little silly, you could just—" Scorpius suddenly looked embarrassed and said, "Never mind."

"Could we talk about this later?" Rose managed, feeling herself blushing.

"Yes, thank you," Scorpius said, blushing too. "Let's go to dinner, come on, you know nothing's in that old book anyway." Rose sighed and shut her book, too, and they went down to the Great Hall to find a large crowd of students gathered around the radio that had been installed at the back of the hall. "Oh, no, what now?"

"Albania's gone mad," Devon Goyle told them, they having stumbled into him on their way through the crowd. The vagueness only worried Rose more as they fought to get closer. Their Head Student badges seemed to convince some of the younger students to move and before long they were within earshot of the wireless.

"… _an estimated 42 dead in the first battles of the civil war emerging in Albania. The large population of former Death Eaters in exile invaded the Albanian Muggle parliament building an hour ago; the local time is 8:15 p.m. The attempted coup was fought by the Muggle military, and now the government has declared war on the magical radicals. The streets have turned into war zones and the Death Eater faction has retreated into the foothills of the mountains, though a larger strike is expected with help likely to come from Nott's Followers soon_ …"

"Emergency protocol, right? That's what McGonagall said?" Devon asked.

"Er, good call, yeah," Rose said. Holding her wand to her neck, she cast a quick Amplification Charm and said, "Everyone return to your houses and wait for instructions from your head of house!" As most students dispersed, many Slytherins, particularly the older ones, hung back and continued to listen to the broadcast. "Excuse me."

"Piss off, Weasley, it's not like we're in trouble anyway," one of them said.

"Hey! You'd be the first targets if the attackers were Muggles, I'd listen to her," Devon said. Rose looked at Scorpius in surprise.

"Like we couldn't handle a couple of Muggles," another girl said.

"Not if they had machine guns you couldn't, and anyway she's Head Girl, so do what she says or I'll take twenty points from Slytherin," he said, staring the two down, and they glared for a few seconds before turning on their heels and walking out of the hall, followed by the rest of the remaining students eventually.

"That was impressive," Scorpius said, grinning.

"I try," Devon replied, smiling too. "Though I'll probably wake up upside down or something. Well, go on, you two have to get McGonagall."

"Thanks, Devon," Rose called behind them as they hurried to the headmistress's office. After telling McGonagall about the situation, they followed the Head Student protocol to patrol the hallways while the Heads of House stayed in the common rooms with the students, until the situation was deemed safe at around 10:00. Rose, despite wanting nothing more than to go to sleep, stayed in the common room reading the Ministerial history book she'd checked out of the library, and Scorpius sat by her side. It was nearly 11:30 when the fireplace roared and Rose was startled to see Al's face in the fire. "Al?!"

"Hey," he said. "I'm assuming you know about the civil war?"

"Yes," Rose said, "why are you in the fireplace?"

"We're going to stop the Follower group going to Albania," he said.

"Aren't they just using Portkeys?" Rose asked. "How are you going to do that?"

Al shook his head. "No, he can't use Portkeys anymore. The Ministry Tabooed the system a while ago, to try to stop him from going abroad. He's been doing it anyway, but they have to travel a different way. They're going to be crossing the Channel at midnight according to our intelligence. We think he's got a Portkey waiting across the French border, so we can't let him get that far." He grinned. "I'm supposed to get a team together, do you want to go?"

"Yeah, of course," Scorpius said quickly, his eyes gleaming.

Rose hesitated before saying, "I don't know, Al, we were just on lockdown and we're the Heads…"

"You'll be back before anyone notices," Al said. "This'll take until one at the most."

Rose looked at Scorpius again, who was already looking at her with an expression that could almost be pleading. She nodded. "Okay, then. Can we just come through here?"

Al looked uncomfortable. "Er, no. You'll have to go through Hogsmeade."

"Why?" Rose asked, suspicious.

"Just trust me. Apparate to our flat, okay? 71 Charing Cross. Thanks, guys. See you in a bit." Al disappeared then and Rose looked at Scorpius, her suspicion only growing.

"Why isn't the Floo network open if they know we're coming?" Rose asked.

Scorpius shrugged. "Come on, let's go," he said, and reluctantly, Rose followed him down to the Room. They got past those living inside on the pretense of a meeting with James, which when Rose thought about it wasn't a total lie. When they finally Disapparated upon reaching the Hog's Head, they found themselves in James's flat he shared with Fred, Al and Alice, a small two-bedroom space close to Diagon Alley. They had appeared in the living room, which had very little floor space left between the table, overflowing pantry cupboards, and several chairs. The table couldn't be seen at all under the maps and rolls of parchment that covered the space not taken up by the cauldron and radio playing Muggle rock throughout the flat; a large and battered Gryffindor banner that Rose suspected James had stolen from Hogwarts hung over the back wall. James, Alice, Fred and Al were around the table, looking at what Rose could now see was a map of Europe, with conjured phoenixes and Dark Marks floating a couple of inches above the paper in several different locations.

"Hey!" Al exclaimed cheerfully when they appeared. "We'll leave in a minute. We're just waiting on Harry."

"Longbottom?" Rose asked, even more suspicious now that she saw there wasn't a single person over 20 involved.

"Yeah. So come look," James said, motioning them over. He pointed to the English Channel on the map, where a tiny Dark Mark was floating on the British side and a phoenix on the French side. He added another phoenix symbol, which he directed with his wand to start following the Dark Mark. "There's a group of French allies on the French side, and we'll come up from behind the Follower group. Our intelligence says it isn't more than 10, and there'll be 17 of us in all with the French, so this should be pretty easy. And we have reinforcements if needed waiting for a call." Harry Longbottom appeared next to Scorpius then, making him jump, and looked at them in confusion. "Why are you two here?"

"Al asked us," Rose said, looking pointedly at Al. He smiled nervously and stepped away from the table.

"Okay, let's go," he said. "We've been to the spot we're thinking of, so Rose and Scorpius can just Side-Along with someone."

"We'll see you there," Fred said, and he, Alice, and Harry Disapparated.

"Here, Scorpius," Al said, and they disappeared as well.

"Rosie?" James said, holding out his arm. Rose hesitated. "You've never been to a real battle, have you?"

"Yes I have," she said defensively. "I was at Hogsmeade, and Azkaban, and Christmas Eve—"

"I mean an actual mission," he said. "It's different than anything you've seen. Just be ready, okay? And try not to shout out what you're going to cast, it's a serious disadvantage."

"Got it," Rose said, feeling a little patronized, and took hold of James's arm as he Disapparated. When they arrived, Rose was struck with the sudden cold breeze and saw they were standing in a wood, hidden from view but with relatively good visibility of the banks of the Channel in front of them.

James pulled out his phone and said, "It's ten to midnight. I'm calling the others now." He held the phone up to his ear and after a moment said, "Aldéric? It's James. Are you all ready?"

"Aldéric?" Rose whispered to Scorpius. "Like from the Modernists?"

"Guess so," he said. Rose shook her head and walked over to Al, pulling him away from the others.

"What's going on? Why is everyone barely of age and why couldn't we use the Floo network?"

"Well… McGonagall doesn't know and I couldn't contact your mum," he said sheepishly. "So we didn't have anyone who had the power to open the Hogwarts fireplaces."

"McGonagall doesn't know?" Rose asked, trying to keep from raising her voice.

"I told you I'd find you two a safe mission," Al argued. "McGonagall doesn't want you leaving the castle, so what did you want me to do?"

"This doesn't seem safe," Rose said. "Where are the adults?"

"We're adults," Al said, and Rose sighed and waited for an answer. Eventually, he said, "We don't know, really. Leah and Bones were supposed to be coming, but they weren't answering their phones so we asked you two."

"So you thought that was a good sign?" Rose asked incredulously, and at that moment, noise started coming from the banks.

"Get down," James hissed, and everyone dropped to crouch behind the tree line as they watched several cloaked figures emerge into their view. Rose counted five. "Too easy," her cousin breathed, and then shouted, "Now!" James, Fred, and Alice sent Stunning spells through the trees, two of which landed and knocked two of the figures over. The other three whirled around and started casting into the woods. Rose cast a Shield Charm nonverbally and tried to remember which defensive spells she could manage without saying the incantation. Had she ever Stunned anyone nonverbally?

" _Stupefy!_ " Scorpius shouted, and Rose pulled him down behind the faltering Shield Charm as one of the figures laughed.

"You aren't supposed to say it," she said quickly, as the Followers sent a green beam of light into the tree behind them, probably not more than two feet above their heads. Rose's heart started pounding.

"Sorry," Scorpius breathed. Rose's Shield was gone and she raced to stand behind a tree, trying to hide her whole body behind it, and took a deep breath. Convincing herself she could manage it, she sent a Stunning spell without speaking, and it hit one of the figures. It wasn't as strong as it would have been verbally, but it did knock him down, and Al followed it with another of similar strength that seemed to finish the job. With only two left, one cast a Shield while the other rolled up his sleeve.

"What's he doing?" Al asked urgently from the next tree. Rose watched as he pressed his hand to his Mark and seconds later, Followers started Apparating onto the banks, at least twenty.

"Oh, bloody hell—" James said, and ducked behind a bush and got on the phone again. "Aldéric, we're going to need you to come to us!" He hung up without another word and dialed another number as the Followers turned, following gestures into the woods from the two original ones. Rose dropped to the ground, as did the others, while blasts of spells, a mix of red and green and blue and white, broke through the tree line and sailed just over their heads. "Zabini! Answer your phone!" he shouted into the phone after a moment, and tried to dial again before a Follower broke through the trees and ran towards him. He blocked the Follower's spell and Stunned him, but another came up behind him and he dropped his phone out of necessity. As the Followers streamed into the forest, another group started appearing on the banks, presumably Aldéric's forces, who seemed to be holding their own, but they only distracted so many. Rose was casting spells at any Follower she could find, trying not to be hit with anything, and eventually made her way to the bush behind which Harry and James had been ducking. Harry was trying to reach Malcolm on his own phone, which didn't seem to be working. A red blast sailed over their heads and they crouched further down.

"I thought you said—!" Rose exclaimed over the noise of the battle.

"We had no idea," James replied, sounding more scared than she had heard him sound in a while. "Can you see the banks?"

"The French look like they're holding them," Rose said, and James nodded.

"James! We have to get to the Ministry!" Harry shouted over the noise.

"We can't just leave!" James exclaimed.

"The Order isn't coming! We can't do this ourselves, there are too many of them!" Harry argued. "You know how this could end. We can't let Nott get your brother, or her, or Malfoy!"

"I know!" James shouted. "But Al's doing fine!" It was true; Al was holding off two Followers while Alice was blasting them backwards. He Disarmed one of them while they watched. "We have to try, Harry."

He nodded. "Okay! We'll stay!" They continued to block the spells that came for them and shoot Stunning spells at the Followers when they could. Harry almost seemed convinced they could hold out until Al's Shield Charm broke and Alice was hit with a Cruciatus Curse.

Rose held James back from running to her, but no one did the same for Harry. "Alice!" he shouted, and ran towards his sister until the same Follower raised his wand.

" _Avada Kedavra._ " Harry Longbottom dropped to the ground, in front of his sister, his eyes wide open and his shocked expression forever frozen on his face.


	19. The Aftermath

**Hi everyone! Thank you all so much for reading, reviews are very much appreciated! The next chapter will be up on Monday. Hope you enjoy! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 19

THE AFTERMATH

"HARRY!" James screamed as his best friend fell. Rose tried in vain to stop him from leaving their cover, and the Follower who'd killed Harry sent a curse at James as he ran. He blocked it easily and shouted, " _Crucio!"_ The Follower dropped to the ground and James kept running until he reached Harry's body. Alice was crying, and he just stared at the body in shock. Fred had just realized what had happened and was running towards them, too. Scorpius and Al kept fighting, holding off the Followers coming at them, and Rose Stunned one of them before running over herself.

James saw her and briefly came to his senses. "You three need to get out of here! Go to the Ministry! We'll be there soon!" He then stood up and drew his wand again, giving the others cover while Rose, Al, and Scorpius Disapparated. When they arrived in the main lobby of the Ministry, they raced to the Auror office and found no one there.

"My mum's office, come on," Rose said through the haze of emotions racing through her head, and they made it to the executive office before they saw anyone they recognized, though they generated a lot of stares. When they burst through the doors, they saw Al's father standing in the hallway with a number of Aurors and Order members, including Professor Longbottom. Al's father rushed over to them, looking surprised.

"What's going on? Why aren't you at school?" he asked her and Scorpius. "And Al, aren't you supposed to be…?"

"We were ambushed," Al managed to say. "There were too many of them and… James told us to go…"

"You were all there?" Al's father asked. "Why? What happened?"

"I…" Al looked at Professor Longbottom, and Rose felt an overwhelming feeling of dread overtake her as he looked at them, concerned. "Can I talk to you alone, Dad?"

"Er, sure," Uncle Harry said, and they rounded a corner before Professor Longbottom walked over to Rose and Scorpius.

"What happened?" he asked them, his voice sounding tense, and Rose looked away. She couldn't do this.

"I need to find my mum," she said quickly, and hurried down the hallway with Scorpius following her.

"Rose," he tried to say, but she turned around to face him, feeling her eyes starting to well up.

"What do you want me to do? I can't tell him his son's dead," she said, and he looked at her with sympathy, making her blink back her tears. She hated pity, more than anything. She watched over Scorpius's shoulder from a distance as Uncle Harry walked slowly up to Professor Longbottom and said something, with Al standing behind him. Seconds later, Neville broke down and Uncle Harry put a hand on his shoulder, but he jerked back and dropped to the floor. The hallway went silent, the large mass of people wondering what was going on, and Rose couldn't bear any more. She turned around and kept walking until she reached the door to her mother's office. When they entered, Rose's mother was standing in front of her desk with John Taylor, her chief of staff, and McGonagall, to Rose's surprise, along with several other Ministry officials. Her mother looked at them in alarm.

"Rose, what are you doing here?" she asked, the headmistress sharing her shocked expression.

"We went on a mission with Al," Rose said, "and—"

"You what?" Rose's mum asked, and McGonagall looked as if she was about to lecture them.

"Please," she said, interrupting, and both women stopped, surprised. "Harry Longbottom's dead."

"Oh my God," her mother breathed. "Where's Neville?"

"He knows," Rose said, trying not to look anyone in the eyes.

"How did this happen? I thought it was supposed to be an easy mission," Malcolm Zabini asked from his position in the corner, talking to interns that now looked very concerned. Rose felt anger bubbling up as she remembered he was the one James had called and had gotten no response from. She tried to contain it, but seeing him made it difficult for her to believe he couldn't have come to help.

"We were completely outnumbered," Scorpius told him, and Rose looked around and for the first time wondered why everyone was here.

"What's going on?" she asked her mum.

"That's not important right now, where's Al? And all the others?" she asked.

"Al's with Uncle Harry—the rest haven't come back yet. They told us to come here," Rose said.

"Who?"

"James, Alice, and Fred," Rose said, and Rose's mother rushed out of her office, followed by McGonagall, John, Malcolm, and others. Rose and Scorpius followed them out into the hallway. Professor Longbottom was gone, and Rose's mother ran up to Uncle Harry and Al.

"Neville went to call Hannah," Uncle Harry told her. "I can't believe this."

"Rose said James was still there," her mother told him. "And Alice and Fred."

Uncle Harry swore. "I'm going down there."

"Harry, you can't," she said, "not when we're so…"

"Hermione, my son's there, I'm going." Just as he was turning to walk out the door, it slammed open and James, Fred, and Alice came running in. All three of them had tear tracks on their faces, and Fred was clutching his shoulder, his jacket visibly singed. James never stopped walking until he reached Malcolm and punched him in the jaw, knocking him back into John.

"You were supposed to be ready to come for us, what the hell happened?!" James shouted as his dad pulled him back. "Let go of me!" he said, jerking his arms away from his father.

"James, it's not his fault, we ordered everyone here," Rose's mother said gently. "No one had their phones—"

"So you just left us?" he exclaimed, glaring at her, and backed away when she tried to step closer.

"Something came up," John said, and James rolled his eyes.

"My friend's dead," he said. John looked at the floor and no one else spoke.

"Where's my dad?" Alice finally asked. "And Frank?"

"They're both in my office," Uncle Harry said quietly. "They called your mother."

"I need to tell them—I'm sorry… we couldn't get his—his body," she said, and started crying. James walked over to her and she buried her face in his shoulder.

"What's happening there now?" Uncle Harry asked James.

"They got across the Channel," James said quietly. "I think there are French casualties. But no one's there now."

"I'll get his body," he said grimly to Rose's mother, and Disapparated.

"So what was so bloody important?" James asked, looking furious.

Rose's mother glanced at McGonagall and said, "Arya Collins made another prophecy tonight. We've been waiting for the Department of Mysteries to catalog it so we can hear it."

"Oh, brilliant, another goddamn prophecy," he muttered. "Just what we need."

"I need to tell Ariana and Charlie," Alice said quietly.

"You don't have to do that, your mum will do that," James said. Alice backed away from him and wiped her eyes.

"I just want to go home, then," she said, and James nodded.

"Let's go," he said. He looked at Fred and Al and asked, "Are you coming?"

Fred shook his head, and Al said, "I have to hear it, James."

His brother nodded slowly and said, "All right." They Disapparated, and Rose's mother walked over to her.

"Are you okay?" she asked. Rose nodded. "Thank God. I'm sorry this happened." She hugged her, and Rose hated this whole night. She just wanted everyone to act normal. She stepped away as soon as it seemed okay to do so.

"We need to hear the prophecy," she told her.

"Right," Rose's mother said, sounding nervous. "Let's go." Rose, Al, and Scorpius followed Rose's mother and McGonagall down to the Department of Mysteries, where they found an Unspeakable waiting right when the door of the lift opened. "Hello."

He looked at them silently and turned around, indicating for them to follow him, until they reached the door Rose had looked into before, where Arya stood just inside, visibly shaken.

"Arya, what's wrong?" McGonagall asked, and she just looked at them, dazed.

"I don't know," she mumbled slowly, walking out into the hallway.

"Where's the prophecy?" Rose's mother asked, but the Unspeakable stopped them from entering. "Excuse me?" He simply shook his head. "I am the Minister of Magic and I demand that you move."

"Hermione," McGonagall said quietly. "They have jurisdiction here."

"He said it was classified," Arya said. "I don't—he said they recorded it, but I don't remember…"

"You Obliviated her?" McGonagall asked, looking angry, and the Unspeakable turned around without so much as a look and slammed the door behind him.

"Classified from me?" Rose's mother exclaimed, incredulous.

"Apparently so," McGonagall said, and Rose turned to Al and Scorpius in shock.

"Can't we give him Veritaserum, or…?" Rose asked.

"It's impossible to interrogate an Unspeakable," Rose's mother said. "Once they take the oath, no one can force them to speak. Only if they wish to."

"We can restore her memory," Al said.

"And be potentially prosecuted for interfering with an independent agency," Rose's mother said.

"This isn't—they can't just keep it from us!" Scorpius exclaimed.

"I'm afraid they can," Rose's mother sighed. "I can appeal the classification, but unless that is approved there's nothing we can do."

"I believe it would be best for you to return to Hogwarts," McGonagall said. "And Mr. Potter, you should at least rest."

"Yeah," Al muttered. "I… should go." He looked at Rose and Scorpius and said, "I'm really sorry."

"You didn't know what would happen," Rose said. "It's okay."

"I'll… see you, then," he said, and Disapparated. McGonagall took Rose, Scorpius, and Arya back to Hogwarts, and walking back to Gryffindor Tower, Rose asked, "You… really don't remember anything?"

"No," Arya said. "I'm sorry." She sighed. "I mean… I remember being really worried about something. I wanted to talk to you. But no, I don't remember…"

As they reached the portrait hole, Scorpius said, "Mercury," and the Fat Lady let them in, looking suspicious. Rose looked at Arya, incredibly frustrated with not knowing what the prophecy said. She decided then that she didn't care what might happen. She was going to find out what it was. If Podmore wouldn't help her, and neither would the Department, maybe he'd been right. She couldn't trust the Ministry.

"We'll get your memory back," Rose told Arya. "We'll figure out a way."

Arya smiled. "Thanks, Rose." She went up the girls' stairs then, and Rose was about to follow her when Scorpius looked at her in alarm.

"Er, hi, this isn't Bonnie and Clyde," he said. "I don't fancy going to Azkaban over this."

"My mum would have to prosecute us, nothing's going to happen," Rose scoffed. "And anyway, we don't have to tell anyone else. You, Al and I deserve to know what it says, don't we? Please, Scorpius," she pleaded, and he groaned.

"Fine. You know I can't say no. But I do this with extreme reservations."

"Noted," Rose said. She remembered who would be in her room upstairs and said, "Oh, God, has anyone told Min about Harry?"

"Ariana, probably," Scorpius pointed out, and Rose sighed.

"I really don't want to go up there," she said.

"Well, you could come with me, but I don't think Blake or the twins would be very comfortable with that."

Rose blushed and said pointedly, "Good night, Scorpius."

"Good night." When she reached her room, both Ariana and Min were thankfully asleep and Rose fell into bed, exhausted.

Despite her determination to discover how to recover Arya's memory, Rose was unsuccessful on finding anything other than the spell for a reversal of a simple Obliviate. They had tried that, but it became clear when nothing happened that the Department of Mysteries had used a more powerful spell. Abandoning her research on the Department itself, Rose threw herself into looking through books about memory and the mind with enthusiasm, and with Scorpius reluctantly helping. She was trying to find a way to reverse something that seemed to be of a strength in between the spell her mother had used on her grandparents and a normal memory wipe. However, the specter of upcoming NEWT tests by the beginning of April began to distract her. No matter what was happening, she knew she had to study for NEWTs, but it was difficult to focus and for the first time in her life Rose found herself pushing schoolwork to the side. The outside world was intruding on her studies as well; by mid-April, many European countries had signed on to join the United States in limited military intervention, but the United Kingdom was still holding out. The United Nations tried to send forces, but the UK's Security Council vote vetoed the idea, and Rose's mother was getting increasingly frustrated. By the time Rose received a letter from her, she knew she was ready to explode.

11-4-2024

Dear Rose,

I hope you're doing well and that you're studying for NEWTs. They may seem far away but a month isn't actually as long as you might think. I trust you're paying attention to the news. After the disaster in Albania, many countries saw it as a sign that they needed to stand with their magical population, but the UK seems to have taken the opposite view. The minority leader was on the morning shows today talking about how this "isn't their war". I could rant again about the stupidity of that, but you know my views and I'm certain you share them. That's why I'm writing to you now. The Prime Minister thinks that speakers from the magical community might help Parliament see sense, and we think that if your uncle Harry and you both spoke to a joint session of the Houses it would really help our cause. We think Uncle Harry would go first, on the 20th, and you on the 27th. Please think about it and write back as soon as possible. I know this is a lot to ask of you, but you've really become a face of the war and we really believe it would help.

Love,

Mum

"Are you going to do it?" Scorpius asked after she gave it to him to read.

"I don't know," Rose said nervously. "The Lords sort of scare me."

"Oh, that's nothing, the King'll probably be there too," Hugo said. She glared at him. Rose read over the letter one more time, and despite her nerves, she knew she couldn't say no.

"I'll do it."


	20. The Battle of Parliament

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading, I really hope you enjoy it! Also, I'm starting a new fanfic on this account; it's Star Wars, not Harry Potter, but I'm really excited about it so if you're a Star Wars fan I'd really appreciate it if you'd check it out. It's called The Last Guardian and it will be up on my profile shortly. Again, thanks for reading! Next chapter will be up Thursday! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 20

THE BATTLE OF PARLIAMENT

The Parliament building was bigger than the Wizengamot chambers, and it made Rose much more nervous than she'd ever been speaking in front of the magical governing body. She knew that Uncle Harry's speech had apparently gone well, but other than that she had little to no idea of what to expect. She'd never been here before and she didn't like the imposing feeling of the old and ornate building. Her mother was with her, but wasn't going inside, as her staff had thought it a bad idea. They wanted the image to be of Rose asking for help, not a world leader demanding aid. Rose supposed she understood that, but it didn't make her any less anxious to walk in alone. Scorpius had wanted to come, but absolutely no one thought that was a good idea. The Muggles weren't stupid, and Scorpius's last name was beginning to mean something to them too the more they found out. It would look bad, they had told him, and anyway after that night at the Channel no one wanted either of them to leave the castle unless it was absolutely necessary. Hogwarts had increased security, too, so that the only way in really was through McGonagall's office fireplace directly to Rose's mother's office; Hogsmeade visits had been cancelled as well, and since the Quidditch season had been cancelled all the way back in October the students were practically ready to stage a mutiny. The Wolf Project was getting more difficult, too, as the Room of Requirement stretched to what Rose was sure was approaching capacity and the long-term residents were getting restless. Nevertheless, they had pickups every weekend. The world wasn't getting any safer, after all.

 _That's what you're trying to fix_ , she told herself as she took deep breaths, staring at the large oak doors leading into the chamber. Today of all days, though, was not the time Rose would have wanted to go. Parliament had just had a long week of debate after Uncle Harry's speech, and some of the rhetoric floating around was less than encouraging. On top of that, she and Scorpius were very close to finding what they needed to restore Arya's memory, she was sure of it. The doors opened slightly and Killian, Rose's mother's aide, slipped into the hallway. "They're ready," he told them.

"Good luck," her mother said. "I'm sure you'll be great." Rose smiled, trying not to betray the nausea she was feeling, and followed Killian through the doors and into the chamber.

"Don't be alarmed if they start shouting," he whispered to her as they entered. Rose expected the noise to die down, but it really didn't. "They probably won't in front of the King, but you know, some of them might."

"Okay," Rose said, a little overwhelmed, as she looked around the room. She didn't recognize most of the people, apart from her own Commons representative, and she could clearly tell who was in which House; the Commons representatives looked much more casual and relaxed, while a delegation from the Lords sat in the back, in robes Rose would have thought would be exclusively for wizards and hardly saying a word. Killian led her to sit on the majority side; the Prime Minister, a beleaguered looking woman in a severe pantsuit, nodded at her from a few seats down on the long green bench, and Rose recognized several Cabinet members between them.

"I'll be just over there," Killian said, pointing to a space near the doorway where Rose saw several people that looked like staff members loitering. "Good luck."

"What—" Rose started to say, startled he was leaving, but the room was silenced when an announcer entered the room.

"Lords and Ladies of Parliament, His Majesty the King," he said, and the doors opened for the King. Rose had never seen him in person; he was a tall older man with thinning hair, dressed in royal regalia, and made his way to his chair at the front of the room, gilded and raised above the others'. The Prime Minister stood and made her way to a table full of microphones in front of them, in between the two main sides of the chamber.

"Good evening, your Majesty," she said. "If it pleases your Majesty we would welcome Rose Weasley to speak on behalf of the Ministry of Magic." She turned and nodded at Rose, who stood up and smoothed her dress, trying to stop herself from shaking, and walked to the table herself.

"Thank you, Prime Minister. Good evening," she added, and set her notes in front of her. "I've come here today to speak to you about the dangers of neutrality in a conflict that affects us all." She glanced at the Opposition side, and saw many people who looked annoyed but thankfully no one responding. "I want to begin by saying that we know you did not ask to be brought into this conflict. But I believe the misconception is that we are the ones who involved you. True, we were honest with you about our existence; but the real reason that you have become embroiled in this war is Theodore Nott and his Followers. These people threaten all of our lives, not just the other witches and wizards they fight. They have marked the non-magical world as their enemy and they seek to conquer us. This is why we could not stand by any longer while they terrorized the non-magical populations of the world. I understand your reservations as a body about military involvement. But if you do not help us win this war, there will come a time when it will no longer be a question of aiding us, but of defending yourselves. In fact, it is already a question of defending yourselves as well. The coup in Albania and the attacks throughout the year on non-magical people have proven this. Theodore Nott believes himself superior and he will not stop until he has taken over our world, magical and otherwise. It is in our power to stop him, if we all work together instead of dividing ourselves. We revealed ourselves to you so that we could do so. I ask you to ensure that we did not do this in vain. Thank you."

Immediately, the chamber exploded into members of parliament shouting questions and responses at Rose so loudly and quickly she could hardly discern the majority of what they were saying.

"How can you say you're trying to help?"

"How do we know Albania won't happen here?"

"This is not our war!" The latter was repeated several times, from what she could hear, and the Prime Minister walked up to her side.

"You don't have to answer any of this," she told her, but just then a loud explosion sounded from the hall and the chaos escalated. The King was escorted through a back door as the doors to the chamber burst open, and Rose caught a glimpse of magic blasts flying before the doors swung shut again with a loud bang. Killian was rushing towards her and she ran to meet him.

"What happened?!" Rose shouted, as he tried to usher her further from the door.

"We have to get you out of here!" he shouted back. "Nott's here!"

"Mum!" Rose exclaimed, realizing who must be out there, and as members of Parliament streamed out of the chamber through several different doors, without even thinking she ran towards the hall and found her mother locked in a battle with Nott himself, as a few Followers fought with her mother's guard. One Follower seemed to have been shot by Parliament security, though there were several more security guards on the floor that weren't moving. Her mother looked at her and shouted, "Get out of here, Rose!"

"Rose Weasley!" Nott said, and turned towards her, casually sending a Cruciatus Curse at her mother, who dropped to the floor. "How convenient," he growled, and advanced towards her.

" _Stupefy!_ " she shouted, and Nott seemed too surprised to block it; he was knocked back and dazed for a few seconds, which gave Rose time to run as fast as she could out of the hall. Killian took off after her, and stopped her in the street outside.

"She'll be fine," he told her. "We need to get you back to Hogwarts."

"I can't just leave!" Rose argued, but they were both stunned into silence by a large explosion that came from inside the Parliament building at that moment. "Oh my God."

"We have to go now!" he said, and grabbed her arm and Disapparated before she had the chance to argue. When Rose could see again, they were in the Ministry, and Killian was pulling her along the executive offices to her mother's office.

"Killian, I don't know if my mum's alive," she exclaimed. "We have to go back."

"I can't let you do that," he said, and she knew he was right, but that didn't stop her from being upset, her head spinning. "Listen, okay? I know it's really hard, my family almost got killed, remember?" Rose nodded slowly, remembering now that Killian's parents and brother, all Muggles, had arrived for protection a few weeks before. "But without you, we lose the war. So I'm getting you back to Hogwarts, and you can save the world when all this is over. Hell, I'll sign on to your cause, just go back to Hogwarts now." He threw Floo powder onto the fire himself, and Rose hesitated before nodding.

"Thanks," she said, trying to calm down. "Hogwarts," she called out when she entered the flames, and before she knew it she was in McGonagall's office. She was surprised to find Professor Longbottom, not the headmistress, waiting for her.

"We heard what happened," he told her. "I'm glad you're safe."

"Where's McGonagall?" Rose asked.

"She's been called away," Neville said. "I'm sorry, Rose, I can't really tell you."

It didn't matter, not really. "I don't know if my mum's…" Rose said, and for the first time noticed the radio playing in the corner.

" _And we're now confirming that the Followers have retreated from the Parliament building, the Minister was seen leaving with her guard seconds ago…"_ Rose sighed in relief as Jordan continued. _"We regret to report that several Parliament security guards have been killed by the Followers and member of parliament Christopher Bennet has been killed in the explosion. Ministry officials are being dispatched to remove the Dark Mark from above the Parliament building…"_

Rose turned to Neville and solemnly said, "They're never going to help us now, are they?"

He looked down and replied, "We're probably on our own."

Rose sighed. "Can I go, sir?"

"Yes. I'll let your mother know you're all right." She left the office and hurried to Gryffindor, knowing Scorpius and Hugo would probably be worried, and sure enough when she entered the portrait hole Hugo was sitting in the chair closest to the door and Scorpius was pacing in front of it. He ran up to her and hugged her, not letting go for a while, despite the crowded common room.

"Rose, I thought—"

"I know," she said, "I'm okay." Hugo stood up too and she hugged her younger brother, despite his apparent discomfort. He did look relieved, though, to see her.

"I need to talk to you, by the way," Scorpius said, "not here." A little confused, Rose let him lead her out of the common room into the hallway outside, where he said, "I think I've found it. It's this potion thing, but it seems pretty easy to brew." He handed her a roll of parchment and Rose looked over the ingredients.

"I don't have even half of these things," she said. "How are we going to do this?"

"Slughorn," he said, smiling. "He'd do it, wouldn't he? He loves you."

"What will we tell him it's for?" Rose asked.

"Just be mysterious, he'll assume he'll be a war hero," he said. "Come on, Rose. If he gives us the ingredients we could have it brewed by midnight." Rose knew he was right, it didn't look too difficult, and Slughorn probably would help them.

"Okay," she said, and they hurried to the dungeons, where they found the potions master in his office.

He jumped when they walked in and said, "Rose! Scorpius! This is a surprise."

"Sorry, Professor, are you busy?" Rose asked.

"Er, no, not too busy to talk to you two," he said, smiling, but Rose thought he looked like he was lying. "What can I do for you?"

"We were wondering if you had any of these things in your stores," Scorpius said, handing him the parchment.

"…I believe I have all of these, yes, may I ask… why?" Slughorn asked. "This looks like a memory potion."

"Er, yes. We were studying memory charms and Scorpius and I were just wondering… hypothetically, about the different strengths of such spells and we wanted to see if we could reverse one if we needed to."

"This is all purely academic, I presume?" he said.

"Yes, of course, sir," Rose said.

He seemed hesitant, but suddenly said cheerily, "Well, that's just fine, then! As a professor it is of course my duty to assist my students in furthering their studies… yes, wait one moment, I have the ingredients you need…" He retreated into the store cupboard behind him. Scorpius looked at Rose with raised eyebrows.

"I'm impressed," he said quietly.

"He wanted to believe that," Rose said.

"I've been meaning to talk to you, Rose," Slughorn called from within the stores. "You thought there was a reason I was here? Well, I asked Professor McGonagall and apparently there was! She didn't go into much detail, she only said my skills were needed to convince someone of something… do you happen to know what she meant?"

Rose looked at Scorpius in excitement, and realizing Slughorn was expecting a response, called back, "Er, that sounds like she's talking about Professor Prince!"

"Iain Prince? Why would he care anymore, he was my predecessor!"

"Right, sir, but when he left he made McGonagall promise she would find a suitable replacement, he was very adamant about it. So maybe she hired you to convince him she had a known talented potions master," she called back. Scorpius rolled his eyes, but Slughorn seemed to believe it.

"Ah! Well, that certainly makes sense," he said, sounding pleased.

"What do you think she really means?" Scorpius whispered.

"Nott still thinks Uncle Harry made a Horcrux, remember?" Rose whispered back. "Keeping Slughorn around would definitely let him keep thinking that." The more Rose thought about it, the more it made sense. She wished she hadn't been quite so enthusiastic about getting to know Slughorn, though, in retrospect. It did seem to be benefitting them now, at least. The old professor waddled back to them, holding a wooden box of several different vials and small containers.

"Here we are," he said, smiling at them. "Everything you'll need! Do let me know how it goes. And you're both studying for your NEWTs, I trust? Only about two weeks left now."

"Yes, sir," Rose said, smiling. "Thank you so much."

"Of course, Rose! Anytime, anytime," he said. "Well, then, er, I'll… see you tomorrow." Rose noticed for the first time an open trunk in the corner, full of folded robes, and realized the professor's desk was suspiciously bare. He looked even more nervous when he noticed where she was looking. "Sir?" she asked. "Are you… going somewhere?"

"Well—you must understand," he stammered, "I'm not a young man, and I've never had the stomach for combat. Frankly, I don't see how Professor McGonagall can expect me to stay when she doesn't even trust the school with the safety of her family!"

"What do you mean?" Rose asked, confused.

"Just this afternoon, the headmistress left to help her niece relocate," Slughorn sighed. "I do hope you don't think less of me, Rose, but I just cannot risk getting involved in another battle."

"She left with Arya?" Rose exclaimed.

"Yes, er, I believe it was while you were speaking at Parliament. How did that go, by the way?" he asked.

"The building exploded," Rose said shortly. "Good night, Professor." She stalked out of the Potions room, Scorpius following her. He didn't try to stop her until they were back on the ground floor, and when he did she blew up. "We were so close! This is so ridiculous!"

"Not here," he said quickly, noticing the few students in the hall had stopped to look at them, and pulled her through the nearest door into an empty classroom. She slammed the box of ingredients onto the desk in front of her. "You're right, it's infuriating."

"You don't look nearly upset enough!" she exclaimed. He shrugged, making her even angrier. "They have no right to do this, McGonagall must know what we're trying to do, and now she's hidden Arya somewhere and we'll never know what the prophecy said and—everyone's against us, no matter what they say! And—and how are you so bloody okay with this?!" she exploded.

"I'm not! I'm not, but I just… never thought the world was fair," he said, taking her hands with his. "We'll work this out, Rose." She looked up at him, and he was looking at her so earnestly and with so much love that emotions flooded through her. She loved him. She could lose him. She didn't care. She kissed him, her fingers tangling in his hair, and he stumbled back a few feet, steadying them against a desk. When they broke apart, breathing heavily, she said, "You know that you're all I'm sure I have left."

"I know."


	21. The Prodigal Slytherin

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading and please review! The next chapter will be up on Monday-only five updates left! Anyway, enjoy the chapter! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 21

THE PRODIGAL SLYTHERIN

"This last weekend puts the total of those staying in the Room of Requirement at 57," the headmistress said as she read through the roll of parchment on which they were keeping their records. "Has there been any trouble? They're all adjusting all right?"

"Other than Collin Dursley and Greyson Wallace fighting over Chloe Matthews, there haven't been any major disagreements," Rose said, trying not to sound impatient. She was trying to not be visibly angry with the headmistress, though in reality she was still extremely upset about her removing Arya from Hogwarts. She had never asked about it, but she suspected McGonagall had somehow found out what they were planning. The logical part of Rose's mind didn't blame her; it was illegal, after all, and she had no way of knowing if it was even safe. But it didn't mean she wasn't upset. And besides all that, these meetings were tedious. She had had her last NEWTs that morning, the end of a very long and exhausting week-long process, and the last thing she or Scorpius wanted to do was review records. "But a lot of them want to go outside. Everyone's on edge."

"Understandable," McGonagall said. "But they have regular access to the WWN, and to the kitchens?"

"Yes," Rose said. "And the Room expanded to include 3 bathrooms, so that's become a little less of a constant issue."

"Where will they go at the end of the school year?" Scorpius asked.

"That remains to be determined," the headmistress told them. "But hopefully, it won't be necessary. Nott's activity has been largely contained to Britain recently, and we believe we are close to discovering their headquarters. Once we do, it will be much easier to force a surrender."

"What about the Order of the Cobra?" Scorpius asked.

"Their movements remain largely mysterious," McGonagall admitted. "But if it will help, you can tell the residents of the Room what I've just told you."

"It'll probably improve morale, at least," Rose said. "Is that all, Professor?"

"Not quite," she said. "I wanted to get an estimate of how many more you think the Room will be able to hold."

"More?" Scorpius asked, aghast.

"Er, it's practically at capacity as is, Professor," Rose said. "If you want to hide more people, I would suggest possibly moving the magical residents to another safe house, since they know how to defend themselves…"

"People like my parents, or Mr. Finnigan," Scorpius agreed.

McGonagall was about to reply when the fireplace suddenly blazed green and Al stepped out, followed by, to Rose's shock, Ajax Rosier. Rose and Scorpius both immediately drew their wands, but Al put up a hand, though his own wand was trained on him as well. "It's okay," he told them. "Sorry for the interruption, Professor. The Order told us to come here."

"Mr. Potter," McGonagall said, nodding hesitantly. "What is Mr. Rosier doing here?"

"He came to us," Al said. "Well, me, really. I had to convince James not to duel him right there, and he asked me to take him to the Minister's office. He said he thought without me they'd just arrest him right there, which is probably true. He says, well… tell them."

The young Follower in question looked at the headmistress, then Scorpius, then Rose, all with apprehension. "I'm defecting," he finally said, his eyes resting on her. "And I want to speak to Lexa."

"Not yet," Al said shortly. "Tell them what you told me."

"Nott's allied with the Order of the Cobra again. He's convinced that Harry Potter made a Horcrux, it's insane but he won't stop talking about it, and that it's in the Resurrection Stone. The Order's coming here, to get it. They know you have it," he said, looking at McGonagall. "They want to kill you."

The headmistress sat up straighter in her seat. "They can very well try."

"There's more," he said. "Nott's headquarters are in Godric's Hollow, but he's locked down the city tonight, the Muggles are locked in the church, and he's trying to lure Harry Potter there, and you three," he added, looking at them. "He won't stop until he has the Hallows."

"Why does he want to kill my dad so badly?" Al asked.

Rosier shook his head. "The Elder Wand, it's not working well for him, he thinks it must be Harry's. And anyway, he wants all of you dead anyway, so…" He looked at the floor then. "I'm sorry… my dad told me I had to—I know I'm going to Azkaban, I just want to see Lexa."

McGonagall nodded. "I will inform the staff. Would one of you gather the students in the Great Hall and have the prefects keep them there until further instruction… the other, take Mr. Rosier to see Miss Rae," she said, sighing.

"I'll do it," Rose said. "Lexa trusts me more."

"Very well," McGonagall said. "Mr. Potter, go with Miss Weasley." They all dispersed, Scorpius running off towards the prefect commons and McGonagall to the staff room.

As Rose, Al, and Rosier hurried to the dungeons, Rosier said, "Thank you, I didn't expect you to really let me."

"Might as well indulge your one human emotion," Al muttered, and Rose looked at him sternly.

"Did you bring the Cloak?" she asked him.

"Yeah," he said. "I got it a while ago, I figured this would be the time." He produced it from under his cloak and Rosier gaped.

"What? You brought it here?!" he exclaimed. "Why?"

"We need all the Hallows," Rose said. "Together, with us in one place. The rules get fuzzy if not."

"So it's true," he breathed. "You're really—I mean, the prophecy, it's real?"

Neither of them answered, but Rose could feel his eyes on them as they continued to run until they reached Slytherin. Rose, not having the slightest clue what the password was, began to pound on the wall until a fifth year boy answered, looking annoyed. "What?"

She pushed past him, ignoring his protests, and called out, "Prefects need to take everyone to the Great Hall, we have a situation."

Everyone in the common room seemed to be trying to ignore her, and Ben Burke even called out, "This is probably the fifth time you've ruined our common room by barging in, Weasley."

"Burke, shut the hell up," Rosier said, and the Slytherins seemed to notice him for the first time. Burke sat up straight, surprised.

"R-Rosier, what…?"

"Where's Lexa?" he asked.

"Ajax?" Lexa asked, having just come out of the hall leading to the girls' rooms. She took in the scene in front of her and asked, "What's going on? Why are you here?"

"We need to get everyone out," Rose said urgently. Lexa nodded, and Devon stood up as well; the two started leading people out of the common room. Lexa hurried over to them once the House seemed to be going.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

Ajax shook his head, but he was managing to smile. "Er, not really. I defected."

"You what?" she exclaimed.

"Shh," he urged her, as the Slytherins streamed past. "I don't know if I'll see you again."

"Don't talk like that," she said, and he just shook his head.

"It doesn't matter," he said. "I just want you to know I love you, okay? If I don't—if I can't…"

Her eyes filled with tears. "I—I love you too." They hugged for a long moment, long enough that Rose started to become nervous about their time frame, and Al pulled her aside as the other Slytherins streamed out of the dungeons.

"I know this isn't the best time, but since it's looking like there's going to be a lot of fighting tonight…we've been getting some pretty serious intelligence reports. Apparently there were two Aurors stationed outside Kendall's office the night of his death. When they interviewed them about it, one said he didn't really remember it clearly. So either he's lying, or someone Confunded him."

Rose looked at him, alarmed. "So there could be a traitor in the Auror department?"

"Possibly," Al said grimly. "Or anywhere on our side. So be careful."

Finally, Lexa stepped back away from Rosier and said, "Do what you have to do. I have to help the rest of the House."

Rosier nodded, looking like he might cry too. "Okay. Okay. Go." Lexa left, though Rose saw her look back at least once, and Rosier took a deep breath and turned back around to them. "The Order of the Cobra will probably be here soon."

"We should get back up to McGonagall's office, James said he'd come through if anything happened," Al said, and they did, finally reaching the top of the stairs about ten minutes later. Rose knew this was more than enough time for Nott to have realized Rosier was gone, and if there wasn't already a plan tonight, there definitely would be now. Sure enough, it only took about a minute for the flames to turn green again and James to step out, wand already out. "Well?" Al asked.

"The Order of the Phoenix is going to Godric's Hollow," James said. "But Al, we're stretched too thin, we aren't sure how much we can spare for Hogwarts."

"We can hold the castle," Al said, looking at Rose, who saw the ghost of a grin on his face. "It's happened before."

"With the Order's help," James said. "I don't know…"

"We can do it, James," Al said. "We have more warning this time." James looked at his brother and nodded.

"Okay," he said. "I'll stay. Let's find McGonagall. You stay here," he warned Rosier. "In fact… _Incarcerous_." Rosier fell back into the chair that had been Rose's not long before, the ropes binding him into his seat.

"Is this really necessary?" he complained.

"Absolutely," James said. "Let's go," he told the three of them, and they all ran out of the office. " _Colloportus_ ," he said, locking the door behind them. "Can't be too careful. I don't care what he says, I don't trust him."

"Good plan," Rose said in agreement. She wanted to believe Rosier had changed, but they couldn't be sure. "McGonagall will be setting up protective enchantments."

"Let's go." They raced to the Entrance Hall, where they did indeed find the headmistress, along with many of the professors and the two Aurors that had been guarding the castle, casting beams of light into the sky that seemed to be congealing into a large clear shield around the grounds. "How's it going, Professor?"

"Good evening, Mr. Potter," she said. "And who from the Order is coming?"

"You're looking at it," James said.

McGonagall nodded, as if she'd expected it. "All right, then. We'll have to manage on our own."

"Will the Shield Charms hold?" James asked.

"For a while," she said. "But eventually we will have to fight, if it's true the Order of the Cobra is coming."

"Understood," he said.

"Do you want a call to arms, Professor?" Al asked. The question was heavy, they all knew what it meant.

McGonagall looked back at them, her expression unreadable. "It appears we have no choice," the headmistress finally said. "Go."

Al, Rose, and James ran back inside towards the Great Hall. Rose noticed Al was smiling and asked, "Are you okay?"

"Never better," he said. "It's exhilarating! It feels like… destiny." She couldn't disagree.


	22. Three They Will Not Remain

**Hi guys, thank you so much for reading, and please review, I really appreciate it. The next chapter will be up on Thursday. Only four more updates left! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 22

THREE THEY WILL NOT REMAIN

When they entered the Great Hall, Scorpius and the other prefects were just barely keeping the peace, with many students seeming ready to burst out of the Hall. Scorpius ran up to them, looking weary. "We have to tell them something."

"We are," Rose said grimly, and amplified her voice with her wand. "ATTENTION!" The Hall, desperate for answers, became silent faster than Rose had ever seen. "The Order of the Cobra is coming. We'll be evacuating as many of you as possible through Hogsmeade. If you're of age and want to stay and fight… we could use the help." Already, far too much of Gryffindor to be feasibly only the of-age ones stood up, and a fair amount of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw joined them. To Rose's surprise, several Slytherins did as well. "Hugo Weasley and Lily Potter will take you to the evacuation point. The rest, follow me. _Only_ if you are _actually_ seventeen!" A fair number of Gryffindors sat down, grumbling, as Hugo and Lily ran up to them, both furious.

"I want to fight! I don't care how old I am," Lily exclaimed.

"Like we'd let you," James said. "You're fifteen, Lily."

"I can't just sit around!" she argued.

"Exactly! You're helping everyone get out safely," Al said. "Now go. Please, Lil."

She looked at both of her brothers and finally said, "Okay. Fine." She turned to go, and stopped, said, "Please be careful," before beginning to direct the younger years out of the Hall. Hugo turned to Rose and hugged her tightly, startling her, before saying, "I'll see you later." It was more like an instruction, or like he was convincing himself, and Rose just nodded.

"Yeah. Of course." Hugo seemed to steel himself before he smiled and went to follow Lily.

"Have the professors put up enchantments?" Scorpius asked. Rose nodded. "Well, they should hold for a while." They started to hear muffled explosions from outside.

"They're here," James said. When they looked back at the rest of the hall, probably close to 100 sixth and seventh years were looking at them, wands drawn and faces determined. "Okay, follow us," James said to the crowd, and together they walked back out the front doors to find, to Rose's horror, the shield charms already faltering. "What happened?" James asked Rudomin, aghast.

"They're using old magic," he said, his voice sounding dark. "We have no idea how long it will hold." Rose looked and past the grounds, across the bridge, stood at least 100 Cobra members.

"We're outnumbered," Rose said anxiously.

"We're evenly matched," Scorpius disagreed, shaking his head.

"Do we really want to find out?" James asked.

"This isn't working," McGonagall said, lowering her wands. "Professors, man the towers, give us support from the air." The professors, apart from her and Professor Longbottom, pushed past the students, running into the castle, and James looked back at Neville.

"You blew up the bridge at the Battle of Hogwarts, didn't you?" he asked Neville.

The professor shook his head. "I did, but… we had hours, we set up explosives, we don't have the resources or the time. And even so, it only delayed them, killed some of them, but the rest just went around."

James looked disappointed, and McGonagall turned to them. "Neville, it might be a good idea to ask the magical inhabitants of the Room of Requirement to fight." Neville nodded and disappeared through the crowd of students. "It doesn't matter if we can't delay them, we'll protect the castle," she told the four of them, but she seemed less than convinced herself. The headmistress went back inside and began to direct the sixth and seventh years to various positions from the Entrance Hall as James ran up closer to the bridge, Rose, Al, and Scorpius following him.

"There has to be a way!" James exclaimed, kicking the ground in frustration. "We're not evenly matched, even if there were less of them, not all those students are good in a fight. If they get across the bridge it'll be a massacre." He looked again and said, "A serious explosion charm could bring it down… if you did it from the middle. And if they were already on it… it might stop most if not all of them." He looked back at the three of them and realized what he'd said. From the middle. Someone would have to be on the bridge when it fell.

The shield charms broke at that moment, and the Order started running down the hills towards them.

"I'll blow the bridge." Rose's heart stopped beating when she heard Al say it, and James was already shaking his head.

"No, Al. I won't let you," he said, walking over to his brother. But Al's eyes were hardened, and Rose knew he meant it.

"James, I love you and I'm sorry about this," he said. " _Petrificus totalus_." James froze and fell to the ground, and Rose couldn't breathe.

"Al, you can't, someone else—one of the Aurors…" she tried to say.

"Too many people have died for us," Al said. His eyes were blazing now. "You've heard the prophecy. One of us has to go, and we all saw you in that vision. And anyway, you two are happy, and they really want me anyway." He handed her the Cloak. "You'll need this. It's yours now."

"Al—" Rose tried to protest, but she was starting to understand it was pointless.

"Rose, you've got so much more to give—I'm a soldier, and you need to be the one to end this, so… go do it. After this, it's just Nott, and Hogwarts will be safe." He sounded as if he was trying to convince himself as well.

"You can't," Scorpius said, shaking his head. "There has to be another way."

"There's no other way," Al said. "It's okay. Really. Tell Alana… well, I reckon she knows. And tell her I'm sorry. You're like a sister to me, Rose," he said, looking at her, "take care of yourself." He paused for a moment. "And tell my dad this wasn't his fault. It wasn't anybody's. It was my choice." Al took a deep breath and looked at both of them, smiling wildly, before charging onto the bridge. He dodged curses, sprinting right at the army running towards him, until he reached the center, and just as they surrounded him, shouted, " _REDUCTO MAXIMA!_ " The bridge broke in half with a sickening boom, and the Cobra guard fell and Al with them.

Rose felt a shock run through her, magical or imagined she couldn't tell, and her head felt like it might split open. When the feeling faded, she watched the remains of the bridge burn and realized she had seen this in their dream. So he was right. It did have to happen.

" _Finite incantatum_ ," Rose breathed, releasing James, who immediately scrambled to his feet and screamed, "AL!" Rose was crying, because of course she was, she couldn't stop herself, not this time. They were all crying.

"It's too late," she was saying to James. "He's gone."

"No, no, why didn't you stop him?" he was saying, crying all the time.

"You know no one could have," Rose said. "He would have just hexed us too."

"It should have been me," James said. "It should have been you!" he exclaimed, glaring at Scorpius, and started to draw his wand. Scorpius backed up, arms raised, and Rose stood between them.

"Don't you dare say that!" Rose shouted.

"No, he's right," Scorpius said, his voice shaking. "I thought so too." James lowered his wand, looking utterly broken, and Rose looked at Scorpius in shock.

"Well, the night's still young," James muttered.

"Neither of you are going to get yourselves killed," Rose said, her voice breaking a little as she tried to stop herself from fully sobbing. "If either of you care about me at all. I'm not going to lose anyone else."

James looked at her, almost seeming disappointed. "Whatever you say, Rosie." He turned around, looked at where the bridge used to be, and kicked up the gravel of the courtyard in a sudden outburst of rage. McGonagall came running out to them then, the students pouring out of the Entrance Hall behind her.

"What happened?" she asked, shocked to see the bridge and the Order gone.

"Al," Rose said, and she seemed to see their expressions then. "He…"

"My God," the headmistress breathed. She looked out over the hill, her eyes looking as if she might cry.

"It looks like there are a few leaders that hung back," James said flatly. "Let's go."

"Leave that to me," McGonagall said. "You need to get to Godric's Hollow."

"She's right," Rose said. "We can take the students. And er, Professor? We're going to need the Stone."

"Why?" she asked.

"We need to have all the Hallows… if we're going to end this."

The headmistress nodded slowly and said, "I didn't trust anyone or anything else with it. Luckily for us." She pulled the Stone out of her cloak and gave it to Rose. The small stone, the Deathly Hallows symbol engraved on one side, felt heavier than ever as she tucked it in her pocket.

Scorpius nodded. "Let's go."

James looked like he might pass out, and Rose put a hand on his shoulder, trying to smile. "Come on," she said. "Let's go end the war." He nodded, and she turned to the mass of students; all eyes were on her. "Nott and the Followers are hiding at Godric's Hollow. We'll need your help if we're going to end this tonight. Are you with us?"

"We're with you," Devon Goyle said, looking more confident than Rose had ever seen him, from the front of the group.

Rose nodded and said, "Then follow us." She took one last look at the bridge before she started towards Hogsmeade.


	23. The Battle of Godric's Hollow

**Hi everyone! I'll just start by saying sorry about the last chapter. If it's any consolation I cried when I wrote it. Anyway, reviews are appreciated and I hope you like this chapter! Three more updates to go, next one will be Monday. Thanks for reading! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 23

THE BATTLE OF GODRIC'S HOLLOW

Rose, James, and Scorpius were the first ones from Hogwarts at Godric's Hollow after Apparating out of Hogsmeade, but they were thrown into total chaos the moment they arrived. The battle had already fully begun, with the Order of the Phoenix and the Aurors duelling the Followers relentlessly. They had arrived closer to the Follower-controlled area than their own, and ran as fast as possible until they found someone they recognized. Teddy had just knocked a Follower unconscious and smiled when he saw them. "Hogwarts is okay, then?"

"Yeah," Rose said, not wanting to say anything about Al to anyone until she absolutely had to. "There's about to be a lot more coming." As she spoke, the other students started Apparating and Teddy laughed.

"This is going to be easy!" he exclaimed. "Watch your back!" Rose turned around as a Follower charged towards her and Stunned him quickly. "Nice one."

"Where's Nott?" Rose asked.

"We don't know," he said. "He hasn't shown his face. Coward. Excuse me." He started running full speed at two Followers who had just spotted him, and James and Scorpius looked at her pointedly.

"We can't tell them," Rose said. "No one will fight."

"I want to fight more than ever," James said.

"You're not everyone," she said. "No matter what you say, Al's a symbol, and if they knew he was—it would seem like we're losing."

"You're right," James finally said, nodding slowly. "Okay. Let's go." As they ran to start fighting, Rose stopped him.

"Are you okay?" she asked him.

"Are you?" he asked.

"Yeah, okay, point taken," she said. Her mind was racing and she could hear her heartbeat. She knew she was running on adrenaline but right now she didn't care. She threw herself into the first fight she found, a young Follower already duelling a sixth year Ravenclaw. She beat him back quickly and turned around when she heard someone shouting her name. It was her father, running towards her, ducking under curses being sent after him.

"Thank God," he said. "I'm going to assume there's nothing I can say to get you to leave?"

"Of course not," she said. He nodded. She almost smiled. "I'm glad to see you too, Dad. Where's Mum?"

"Apparently not allowed to be here," he said. "But let's see how long she lets that last. My guess is she Apparates here the second no one's looking at her." He suddenly seemed startled. "Wait—what are you doing here? Isn't Hogwarts—?"

"That's done," Rose said.

"Where's your brother?"

"He's in Hogsmeade, he's safe," Rose said. He looked at her and she realized she was still holding the Cloak.

"What do you have that for?"

"Long story," she said. Her father Stunned a Follower running towards them and she said, "Do you know where Nott is?"

"No," he said. "But stay away from him, if you find out." Rose resisted the urge to scream. Was she the only one who understood what was happening? Suddenly, a duel happening behind them blasted into the forefront of their conversation as Draco Malfoy was knocked on his back in front of them. The Follower fighting him was raising his wand when Rose's father shot a Revulsion Jinx at him and he was thrown back into the crowd. He helped Mr. Malfoy up and said, "Malfoy. Nice to see you've finally joined the fight."

"Always a pleasure, Weasley," Mr. Malfoy said. "Seriously, though… thank you."

"That's the third time, now," Rose's father said. "I think under the circumstances… we could probably call each other by our first names."

Mr. Malfoy seemed touched. "Sure, Ron. If you'll excuse me, I think I'll go finish him off."

"Sure you're up for it?" her father called after him, and he grinned back at them.

"I think I'll manage." And then he was gone and Rose was looking at her father, impressed.

"What?" he asked, a little defensive.

"Does this mean I can move in with Scorpius when we graduate?"

"Does this mean you can _what?!_ " A jinx flew past them, two inches from his head, and her dad looked conflicted. "This conversation is absolutely and without question _not_ over," he told her, and ran off back into the fray. Rose started running, now determined to find Scorpius, but instead found Devon Goyle, who looked thrilled.

"Hey, Rose! This is brilliant!" he exclaimed. "I just dueled two people! And I'm fine! I didn't know I could do that!""That's great, Devon, have you seen Scorpius?" Rose asked.

"No, why? Hey—" his expression sobered and he said, "I heard about Al, I'm really sorry… I can't believe it."

"Devon—you can't tell anyone else about that, okay, his parents don't know yet," Rose said. She was starting to see that she was going to have to tell them sooner rather than later, or they'd hear by accident.

"Oh okay, I won't," he said earnestly.

"Have you seen them?" Rose asked.

"Er, I think I saw Mrs. Potter on the next street," Devon said. "I'll come with you, I can cover you."

"You don't have to—" Rose started to say, but just then, Devon was hit in the back with a spell and toppled over. "Devon!" She blasted the Follower that had cast the spell back and dropped down to the ground. "Are you okay?"

"I… huh…" Devon was losing consciousness and Rose knew she had to get him to safety. She threw the Cloak around both of them and levitated him up to the highest level she could without the Cloak revealing her feet. She slowly made her way through the crowd, trying not to let too many people bump into them and figure out their location. She needed to find someone she could trust—but the warning Al had given her about the traitor made it harder, who could she really trust? She made it to a small side street, the one Devon had pointed out, though it was deserted, before she threw the Cloak off. He was unconscious and she had to find someone fast. She ran all the way down the street and looked in the windows, finding no one, but when she had almost made it back to Devon someone whispered, "Rose!" She looked, and standing in the alleyway was Aunt Ginny, standing over an injured student that didn't look at all of age.

"Aunt Ginny, oh, good, my friend's hurt," she said quickly, and managed to half-carry, half drag Devon into the alleyway. "Who's…" Rose trailed off when she saw who it was; somehow Charlie Longbottom had snuck into the group and was now half-conscious with wounds on his chest. "Is he going to be okay?"

"Yes, I'm fixing it," she said. "I can help your friend next."

"Where's Uncle Harry?" Rose asked hesitantly. She didn't want to tell her alone, there was no reason to do that…

"He's gone running back into the thick of it," she said shortly, "I told him not to but that man's hero complex is… anyway." She closed the last of Charlie's wounds and smiled, relieved. "There. They aren't going to lose another son," she said quietly.

Rose had to say something. "Aunt Ginny…"

"Ginny!" Rose looked behind her and Uncle Harry was running into the alley. He stopped when he saw Devon and Charlie. "Are they…?"

"Charlie's all right, let's see about this one," she said. "What about you? Are you still in one piece?"

"Course," he said, smiling. "I told you I would be." Aunt Ginny rolled her eyes, but the tension there was palpable and Rose felt terrible about what she had to tell them. As her aunt hovered over Devon, casting healing spells and bringing the bruises that had rapidly formed on his back towards the center of the spell damage, Uncle Harry sat down next to Rose as explosions and spells could be heard faintly down the road. "It's like Nott's hiding," he suddenly said. "I can't find him. All his people are here, I don't know where he would be. The Muggles are locked in the church, I thought he might be there, but I broke in there and no, nothing… I suppose he's trying to draw me out." He looked straight across from him at the opposite building's wall suddenly and his eyes widened. "I know where he is." He stood up and started to leave, but Aunt Ginny practically bounded over Rose to grab his sleeve and stop him.

"So you're going to let him? Draw you out?" she exclaimed. "Don't be stupid, Harry, he could have twenty people waiting to ambush you."

"What do you want me to do, Ginny?" he asked. "He's going to try to kill me anyway, and he's obviously only going to play his own game. So I'll play."

"You're handing him the advantage," she said. "This isn't like Voldemort, there's no Horcrux, this time you'll just die."

"I won't," he said. "I'll be fine." They kissed, Aunt Ginny drawing him towards her with a startling intensity, and Rose looked down at her hands. She should tell them. She couldn't.

"Let me come with you," she said, and he sighed.

"There's no need. It's just going to be me and him." Uncle Harry backed out of the alley and ran down the street out of sight. Aunt Ginny stared after him until she slowly nodded and sat back down, finishing Devon's healing. Rose knew this was her chance to follow him; she started silently creeping towards the Cloak, just a few feet away.

"Your friend's going to be okay," Aunt Ginny was saying, but she wasn't looking up. Rose took her chance and threw the Cloak over herself, grabbed her wand, and tore down the street. She could hear her aunt shouting her name, but kept running until she found Uncle Harry and slowed to a walk. Though he was dodging spells left and right, she was now invisible and no one was aiming anything at her. This also slowed the rush of adrenaline and let her really see the battlefield, for the first time. It was horrible. People were falling, dying, everywhere she looked, and everywhere else someone was fighting someone for their life. There were bodies on the ground, and many she didn't know, but a few she did: Bones, the Auror, was the first she saw. Later on, she nearly stumbled over Antonin Dolohov, his graying beard framing a sinister smile frozen onto his face, and saw Professor Rudomin running back into the battle holding the old Death Eater's wand. And at the edge of the battlefield, a little further along the road from the fighting, stood Grace Zabini over two bodies. Rose covered her mouth to keep from audibly gasping when she saw it was Malcolm Zabini and Leah Shafiq; the two had died together and now laid side by side. Uncle Harry put a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"They were both very brave," he said. "Do you need help moving them?"

"I can do it," Grace said, her voice sounding hollow as she stared down at her brother, and after a moment he moved on, with Rose following. She wanted to help Grace, or at least pay her respects, but she could do that later; right now, if she lost Uncle Harry, she might lose the war. It wasn't long after that before she realized where they were going. She had been once before, as a small child, with Al and James and Hugo and Lily, when their parents had begun to tell them about what had happened before they were born. The Potter cottage at the outskirts of town. Sure enough, when they entered the abandoned cemetery and the cottage came into view, there Nott stood, alone in front of the somewhat dilapidated building. He sent a Killing Curse into one of the tombstones near to them, clearly a warning, but still made Rose wince as it hit and blasted the headstone apart.

"Theo," Uncle Harry said, smirking. "I've been looking all over for you. You still have my wand."

"A technicality that will soon be dealt with," Nott replied, and sent another curse, this time straight for Harry, who blocked it.

"I don't think so," he said, and the two men began duelling at an intensity Rose didn't think she'd ever seen, spells flying faster than Rose could probably have even thought about them.

She did notice that Uncle Harry's spells were almost purely defensive, something Nott clearly noticed too, as he finally shouted, "Fight back!"

"I won't kill you, Theo," he said, "and you won't kill me either. We both know that, let's stop pretending." Rose did notice that Nott hadn't sent a single Killing Curse directly at Harry, which made her think he had probably convinced the Dark wizard last year at Azkaban that it wouldn't work. Nevertheless, Nott began sending a barrage of hexes at him, one after the other, until finally one knocked Harry's wand out of his hand. He summoned it to himself and laughed as he caught it.

" _Crucio!_ " he called out, and the blast of red light hit Harry as he convulsed on the ground, holding back screams. Rose knew it had to be now.

"Stop!" she shouted, and threw off the Cloak, drawing her wand and stepping between them.

"Rose, what are you doing?" Harry exclaimed, though his voice was still weak, and Nott laughed.

"And now she's brought me your Horcrux, how wonderful," he said. "I thought I'd have to go all the way to Hogwarts to get it from those loons."

"The Order's out of the picture," Rose said. "And you will be soon, too." It occurred to her that she had no idea how she was going to defeat him. She was strangely confident, though, and kept picturing the dream from the Department of Mysteries, of her standing over someone with two wands. She knew it was only a possible future, but it was all she had, and it had been true so far, so she held onto it.

"You're forgetting, girl, the Elder Wand is truly mine now," he said. "And now you've brought me the other Hallows. Including the soul of Harry Potter."

"You really still think I made a Horcrux?" Harry asked. "Don't you know by now how I survived that night, Theo?"

Nott was still staring at Rose, but she could tell Harry's comment bothered him. "How?"

"Voldemort had made me a Horcrux," Harry said. "He didn't mean to, but he did. So when he killed me, he killed part of himself. But I survived."

"This is ridiculous," Nott laughed. "And anyway, it doesn't matter. I'll soon be the Master of Death, and you both will be dead."

Rose sent a Stunning spell at him, which he blocked easily, and she held a strong Shield Charm for a while under his bombardment of hexes until she couldn't anymore. She got in one more hex that only made him stumble a little before he knocked her down. How was she ever going to beat him? She scrambled to her feet as he laughed and advanced towards her. Before she knew what was happening, Nott raised the Elder Wand and shouted, " _Avada Kedavra!_ "

She had just enough time to hear Uncle Harry shout, "Rose!" before the force of the spell hit her.

She felt the energy go through her like a shock, and felt her consciousness fading, this was it, she was dying, until she was suddenly jerked back into reality and her eyes flew open again. Nott was blasted backwards by the force of his spell, but he was slowly struggling to stand, and Uncle Harry was staring at her in shock. She didn't want to waste the opportunity she saw and called out, " _Stupefy!_ _Expelliarmus!_ " Both wands Nott was holding flew out of his hand as he was knocked back onto the floor. Rose caught the Elder Wand in her left hand, and Uncle Harry's wand went flying back to him. Nott sat up moments later, looking dazed, and Rose backed up, not wanting to let him get close enough to her wand. "It's over," she told him.

"And so it is," he said, his voice devoid of emotion. Uncle Harry walked cautiously over to him and trained his wand on him. Nott was still staring at Rose. "How…" he breathed, and Rose didn't know, didn't have a clue, how she was alive.

"You're under arrest in the name of the Ministry of Magic for multiple counts of murder and attempted—" Harry was saying, but suddenly Nott lunged for Harry's wand, wrestled it out of his grasp, and aimed it at himself. "Wait!" Harry shouted, but it was too late. Nott fell to the floor, dead by his own hand. Rose recoiled, and Uncle Harry sighed and turned around. "He knew it was over," he told her. Rose nodded, staring at Theodore Nott's dead body. It felt strangely final, and for the first time in years, she felt somewhat safe. "Are you okay?"

"I think so," she said. "Did I… what just happened?"

He looked at her and shook his head. "I honestly don't know."

"But he hit me… with the Killing Curse. I should be dead," Rose said. Uncle Harry shrugged, looking just as confused as she was.

"Welcome to the club. You'll never be able to explain it to anyone, it's best to just try to forget." He smiled hesitantly and added, "Let's go." When they returned to the battle, the tide had turned in the Order's favor, especially after Muggle national guardsmen had arrived to rescue the Muggle inhabitants of Godric's Hollow. Between the Order, the Aurors and the guard, the Followers were all but done for, and when the remaining crowd of stragglers and survivors saw them walking down the path, it grew quiet. The eyes of the people they passed seemed to follow Rose, holding her wand in one hand and the Elder Wand in the other. The crowd seemed to almost part for them until they reached Aunt Ginny, standing with James, Scorpius, and Rose's mother and father in the center. Scorpius was the first to run up to them, hugging her tightly, and Rose finally let herself relax. They had both survived. He was really still alive.

"Theodore Nott is dead," Harry announced, and the crowd fell completely silent. No one was fighting anymore. Scorpius backed away from her then.

"Did you…?" he asked, and Rose held out the Elder Wand.

"I suppose this is mine now," she said, though even holding it felt wrong to her. The power she could feel in it was more than frightening.

"Did you tell them?" James asked Rose, and she looked down and shook her head as the dread she'd felt earlier returned in full force.

"Tell us what?" Harry asked, and James looked away. Rose stepped forward, taking a deep breath.

"It's Al," Rose said quietly. "I'm so sorry, he's… he died." Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny looked frozen.

"How?" Harry finally asked.

"He took down the bridge. He took out the whole Order, he saved Hogwarts," Scorpius said. "We couldn't stop him."

"He told us to tell you it wasn't your fault," Rose managed, before her tears welled up again and she turned around to hide her face in Scorpius's shoulder. The crowd watched in silence as she cried, and the Potters Disapparated.

"They've gone to the Ministry," her mother finally said gently, what felt like a long time later, touching her arm gently. "Rose? Let's go. We have to go."Rose nodded slowly and stepped away from Scorpius. "Okay," she said, nodding, and they left Godric's Hollow for what Rose, after everything that had happened, hoped would be the last time.


	24. The Master of Death

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading, and please review, I really appreciate it! Next chapter on Thursday; only two updates left! -Kelly**

CHAPTER 24

THE MASTER OF DEATH

"How many are dead?" It was the first question Scorpius had asked, and Rose winced when he asked it; until that moment, since they'd gotten to the Ministry, everyone had been very quiet and hadn't spoken much about the battle they'd left. But Rose had to admit she wanted to know too.

"At last count, I heard about 40," Rose's father said. They were all sitting in Rose's mother's office, the room having been cleared by Killian for them when they arrived. Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny sat on the small sofa near the door, and hadn't spoken. James had gone to find Lily and tell her, and seeing that they weren't back yet Rose suspected she wasn't doing well. Rose's father had gone to get Hugo a while ago, and her brother was now sitting next to her against the wall on the floor, with Scorpius sitting on her other side. Her father was sitting at her mother's desk, looking exhausted, and Scorpius's parents sat in the chairs meant for her staff behind him; Rose's mother had been called away when they'd arrived to meet with the Muggle prime minister and Rose felt her absence deeply. She had been relatively independent since she had started at Hogwarts, but today all she wanted was to be as close to her family as possible. The sun had come up a little while ago, and news was filtering in, but Rose didn't want to hear any of it. She would hear who was alive and who was dead when she could think clearly again. "It's… actually less than I thought it'd be."

The door opened then, and Rose's mother entered, looking haggard and anxious. "I have to make a statement with the PM in an hour," she said. Rose's dad stood up and offered her the chair, but she waved him off. "Don't be silly, Ron," she said, and sat in the last empty chair, the one in front of her desk intended for visitors. "I've probably brought the world in with me, so I apologize." Sure enough, the door opened again briefly and John peered inside.

"So sorry," he said. "Er, ma'am, there's someone hear to see all of you. Department of Mysteries," he said, and Rose felt the energy of the room stiffen. "Should I send him in?"

"Yes," she said, "we probably should see him." She was looking at Rose, and she knew Uncle Harry had probably said something to her about what had happened. John disappeared and when the door next opened, the gaunt man from the night they took the potion entered the room. Scorpius took her hand in an effort to comfort her, and Rose knew she must have stiffened when he walked in. "Are you going to speak?" she asked him.

"I have no reason not to anymore," he said. "Both prophecies came true."

"If that's true, show us the second one," Rose said, her voice filled with anger.

The man produced a blue orb from his cloak. "That's what I've come to do." He held out the orb and Rose's pulse sped up as it began to speak.

 _Antioch's heir shall fall to the Master of Death_

 _And they will know power so far unseen_

 _The sacrifice of the one will protect the two_

 _Until they should wish to be three once more_

"Antioch's heir," Uncle Harry said, his voice coming out lower than Rose had ever heard. "That's Nott. Antioch Peverell is the first brother in the story." Everyone looked at Rose, who looked down at the Elder Wand with disdain. She didn't want this. "Why did you keep this from us?"

"You could not have known or it would not have come to pass," he said. "We have gone to great lengths to ensure you would not hear it. We were forced to silence more than one."

"Oh my God," Rose said, and everyone looked to her. "You killed Kendall, didn't you? He must have known. You were the traitor."

"Darius Kendall was going to interfere with the prophecy. We prevented this." Rose was starting to shake; he didn't look sorry at all.

Rose's mother stood up immediately and angrily said, "Harry. Arrest him."

"We can't," Uncle Harry said quietly.

The Unspeakable looked offended. "We follow the laws of magic, not the laws of men. You have no power over me."

"You killed the Minister of Magic," she said, incredulous. Rose felt the same way, but she knew that nothing was going to happen to him. It made her deeply angry, but like he'd said, there was nothing they could do about it.

"Regrettably, yes. But we had to be allowed to continue our work." Looking helpless, Rose's mother sat back down, and her father took her hand gently.

"What did you do?" Rose asked the Unspeakable. As she kept speaking, it made more and more sense, and she knew she was right. "What was in the potion? The prophecy said the one will protect the two. Well, I survived the Killing Curse last night. That was you, wasn't it? Something about the connection?"

The Unspeakable almost looked impressed. "Yes. We never fully removed the connection. We altered it instead."

"What does that mean?" Scorpius asked, his voice sounding dangerously even in the way Rose knew meant he might explode any moment.

"Once Albus Potter died, neither of you could be killed," he said. "Not by Theodore Nott, and not by anyone else either."

"What?" Rose asked, sitting up straighter. "You don't mean…"

"We believe you no longer have the ability to die," he said. Rose looked at Scorpius, alarmed being a gross understatement. "When Albus died, he ensured your protection."

The room fell silent, no one knowing what to say. "Well, as long as the potion works," Scorpius finally said. "But we could just… take an antidote, right? There is an antidote?"

"Yes," the Unspeakable said, "but I would advise against it. If you were to reverse the effects of the potion now, your mental connection would still be intact and you both would likely die."

"So undo the connection," Rose said.

"We cannot," he said. "We never discovered how. We aren't sure it's possible."

"So… you're saying we can't die?" Scorpius asked.

"Until you wish to take the antidote," the Unspeakable said. "Or we discover how to dissolve the connection without killing you."

"Until we 'wish to be three once more'," Scorpius quoted, shaking his head. "God."

"Like my mother's protection magic," Uncle Harry said. "But… permanent."

"Similar, yes," the Unspeakable said. "It is old magic, not fully understood."

"You should never have used it at all," Rose said.

"And where would you be if we hadn't?" he asked. It was clearly rhetorical. "Any time you would like the antidote, let us know. Until then, we will only contact you if we find a solution." The Unspeakable turned to leave, but paused at the door. "This would always have happened," he said, seeming almost confused at their expressions. "Nothing could be altered once the first prophecy was heard. We did nothing to you, we only were an instrument in the events to come."

"The guiding hand of fate," Rose said quietly, remembering Podmore's words from last October. It felt like years ago.

"Just so," he said, nodding. "Congratulations, Rose Weasley. You are the Master of Death in every sense." With that, he was gone. Rose stood up, highly aware that everyone was looking at her again.

"Can I… I just need a minute," she said, and walked out and into the hallway. Thankfully, the Unspeakable had disappeared, and she started pacing without really knowing what she was doing. Scorpius emerged a moment later, and after a moment asked, "What do you need?"

"I'm not sure," she said quietly. "I…" She had so much to do. She had to talk to Podmore, she had to find James and Lily, she had to talk to Alana… but she knew what she had to do first. "I don't want any of this," she said. "But it's more than that. No one should have this much power." She took out the Resurrection Stone and hesitated as she set it on the floor.

"If you're going to do what I think you are," Scorpius said, "maybe we should wait. What if… your aunt and uncle might want to say goodbye to Al."

"Yes, they do, but that's not how it's supposed to work," Rose said. "If anything that proves we need to destroy it. Don't you remember how addictive it was before? If we don't do it now, I know we never will. And anyway, do we know what bringing him back, even just for a moment, could do to us? I don't think we should mess with the veil when we're barely keeping from being pulled through it."

He looked at her and sighed. "You're right. And he would understand." Rose wasn't sure about that, but regardless, she raised the Elder Wand, her hand only shaking a little bit; she didn't really want to use it at all but she knew if anything could destroy the Stone it would be the Wand.

" _Reducto_ ," she said, and the Wand blasted the Stone apart until it was nothing but a small pile of ash on the ground. She felt the energy of the Wand surge through her, a feeling of power she was sure she could get used to. That was scary enough to convince her that she was right and with some difficulty, she snapped it in half. With a flick of her own wand, she Vanished the ash of the Stone and brought the pieces of the Wand back into her mother's office. Some of those inside looked with shock at the Wand, though Rose saw Uncle Harry nod in approval. Without a moment's hesitation, she crossed the room and threw the Wand into the fireplace. As it burned, she went to Uncle Harry and gave him the Cloak.

"I don't really want to burn this, but it's your choice," she told him.

"I think I'll keep it," he said. "Thank you."

"What do we do now?" Hugo asked.

"I want to finish school," Rose said. "I know I already took NEWTs but I really want to finish with my class."

"Me too," Scorpius said, glancing at his parents, who nodded.

"If that's what you want," Rose's mother said. "We'll see you soon." Rose hugged her, then her father, not excited to leave them but ready to go back. She walked out with Scorpius, and Hugo hung back for someone to take him back to the castle.

"I can't believe it's over," Scorpius said, and she nodded. "It doesn't feel real."

"I know," she said. She looked at him, then, and said, in a rush of emotion, "I really thought I was going to lose you."

"I thought so, too," he admitted. "I never really thought you would die, though. I don't know why, but… it was always going to be you, Rose, in the end. And I think it's probably because you were just strong enough to give it up."

She looked down. "You would have, too."

"I'd like to think so. But I don't know," he said. "Anyway, you aren't going to lose me. Not ever, now, apparently."

"Oh, my God," she said, remembering suddenly. "We have as much time as we want." She started to smile but it faded almost instantly. "Oh, I don't know if I want that much control over my own death."

"They might find something," Scorpius said. "Eventually. But at least the way things stand we can go together 100 years from now or something."

Rose took a deep breath. "Right. Okay. I'm going to try to take a positive outlook on this."

Scorpius shook his head. "I love you so much."

She smiled, and as awful as this all felt, she knew they would be all right. "Let's go home." And they Disapparated back to Hogsmeade together.


	25. Commencement

**Hi everyone! This is the last real chapter of the series (there will be an epilogue, though), so I just want to say how much I appreciate all of you reading this series until the end! It really means a lot to me as a writer that so many people have enjoyed these books. I want to especially thank everyone who's left a review; your feedback has really helped me to grow as an author. And thank you to all of my friends who have helped me work through ideas and let me rant about writer's block. So anyway, thank you so much again for reading! Also, if you want to follow me on tumblr, my URL is general-leia-orgxna. Please review and let me know what you thought! And watch for the epilogue (and another announcement) on Monday (the 31st)!**

CHAPTER 25

COMMENCEMENT

"As we close the school year, we would like to take the time to pay tribute to those of our student body that were lost defending our school and the Wizarding World two weeks ago," McGonagall said, and Rose braced herself, looking across the table at Scorpius and Hugo and feeling very uncomfortable. "We remember Jamie Montague, a seventh year Slytherin; Christina Baker, a seventh year Hufflepuff; and Oliver Wells, a sixth year Gryffindor, killed in Godric's Hollow. And we remember Albus Potter, a seventh year Gryffindor, who was killed defending Hogwarts. These students all fought with courage to protect us, and will never be forgotten." The headmistress, with a fluid wand motion, revealed a smaller plaque below the one from the Battle of Hogwarts, behind the staff table near the House points; the four names were inscribed there, but Rose knew she would never look. There was something about an inscription reading ALBUS POTTER, 2006-2024 that she sincerely did not want to see. And after the funeral, she had seen far too much proof that he was really gone. "Hogwarts will never forget their sacrifice." The students clapped politely, no one really seeming to know what to do. Rose joined in, just as unsure as everyone else. "And as for all of you, let us go forward now in the spirit of forging the new beginnings these four young witches and wizards have sacrificed everything to bring to us. With that in mind, we will now present the diplomas to the graduating seventh years." Rose stood up along with the rest of her class and congregated with them in front of the headmistress's podium. As she began to read their names alphabetically, Rose couldn't help but remember their Sorting all those years ago. She had been so nervous, so excited, and so, so young. She remembered what the hat had said to her: " _You'll have to be quite brave, I can tell."_ She wondered if it really could. It clearly saw something in Al, to put him in Gryffindor; he'd confided in her years later that it had wanted to put him in Hufflepuff at first. He probably would have made a good Hufflepuff. _Loyal until the end,_ Rose thought, _to us and to the cause. And good, genuinely, honestly good, probably better than all the rest of us._ When she started to pay attention again, McGonagall had gotten up to Ana Krum. She wished she'd been paying attention to whether the headmistress had skipped Christina Baker's name, or if they were going to read Al's. "Scorpius Malfoy." She watched as he took the roll of parchment from McGonagall, and she looked down before saying, "Dean Marchbanks," and then skipped to "Lexa Rae". Rose breathed a sigh of relief. It was probably for the best, it would have been a longer silence than she could bear. She watched as everyone received the diploma, until she and Min were the last two.

"We made it," Min whispered to her, smiling. After all that had happened, it meant more than usual.

"Dominique Weasley." Min strode up to the headmistress, took the diploma rather quickly, and rushed down to where the other seventh years were waiting, grinning from ear to ear.

"Rose Weasley." Rose walked up the steps and McGonagall handed her the last small roll of parchment. "Congratulations," she whispered, and Rose could have sworn she saw her eyes welling up.

"Thank you, Professor," she said, smiling, and she went down to join her class, who were already cheering.

"Congratulations to the class of 2024," McGonagall said, and the hall erupted in applause.

Late that night, the Gryffindor common room had been overtaken by the graduates of the House, sitting in a circle on the floor with Bertie Bott's and a couple smuggled bottles of firewhisky courtesy of Dylan Finnigan-Thomas. The twin in question was becoming very animated after drinking nearly half the current bottle himself. "New beginnings, that'd be brilliant, only problem is I have no idea what I'm doing with my life. I've just got a job at a shop for the summer and four NEWTs."

"I don't think most people really know what they're doing at this point," Emma Drake said, and he shrugged.

"Well, what are you doing?"

"I'm going into the Healer program," she said, and he nodded.

"Yeah, that's what Declan's doing. You're both more organized than me," he said. "Jordan?"

"Working on Quidditch Night full time starting next week," Alana said, and Dylan sighed.

"What about you, Rose? I almost don't want to know," he said.

"I have an internship in the International Magical Office of Law," she said, turning a little pink as most of the circle laughed.

"Of course you bloody do," Dylan snorted. "You probably passed all seven of your NEWTs too, didn't you?"

"Well… yes, but not perfectly," she said.

"She got an E in Magical Theory," Scorpius said, rolling his eyes. "Because the professor tried to kill her. Os on everything else." Now the entire group laughed and Rose turned even redder.

"You've got the same thing, Malfoy," Min said. "One E, Os for the rest."

"Yeah, but I only took five," he said. "Because I am a sane and normal person." It was Rose's turn to roll her eyes.

"Have you two picked out your cottage in the countryside yet?" Declan asked, and Blake laughed while Alana looked down at the floor. Rose saw and almost asked for the bottle.

"It's just a flat in Whitehall," Scorpius said.

"Rose is going to be Minister for Magic," Min told everyone and Rose rolled her eyes.

"Likely," she scoffed and Blake shrugged.

"I'd vote for you."

The noise died down as Declan said quietly, "It's weird without Al."

"I know," Blake said. "It feels wrong somehow." He looked over at Rose and Scorpius and said, "Sorry. I know it's nothing compared to what you two must be feeling."

"You don't have to apologize for missing him," Rose said. "We miss him too."

Dylan raised the bottle and said, "To Al," before taking a drink.

"We're leaving in ten hours," Emma said. "And never coming back. It's strange to think about."

"We should probably go up, then," Scorpius said. "One last night in the dorms."

"Let's just all go up to ours, it's not like they'll do anything about it," Dylan said, but Min shook her head.

"I want to say goodbye to my bed. We've had a long and passionate love affair." Alana laughed and followed her up the stairs first. Rose kissed Scorpius good night and followed them up, taking in the Gryffindor common room as she did. When she went to bed that night, she found herself staring at the notched signatures of former students in the bedpost. She usually refused to etch her name into school property, but she knew the seventh year dorm was the exception to the rule, and ran her fingers over her own name with '24 next to it as she read the others around her. Her eyes caught on something she had never noticed before, the name a few inches above hers: _L. Evans, '78_. Smiling, she turned over and went to sleep for the last time in Gryffindor Tower.

When Rose woke up that morning, it was relatively early. She knew she had a couple hours before the trains left, and she had packed everything she could the night before. She got dressed, put the last of her things in her trunk, and looked around the circular stone room of four-poster beds and deep red curtains for the last time before going downstairs. There was a good portion of the House sitting in the common room, one of whom was Scorpius, and they left through the portrait hole together to go down and have breakfast in the Great Hall. With about half an hour to spare, Rose realized the one thing she had to do. "I'll meet you in the Entrance Hall," she told him, and he agreed, though he looked a little confused, as she left the Hall and walked to the headmistress's office. McGonagall opened the door for her and smiled when she saw her.

"Miss Weasley," she said. "Shouldn't you be getting ready to leave?"

"Can I have just a moment, Professor?" Rose asked. McGonagall let her in, and she didn't bother to sit at the desk before asking, "Did you pull Arya out because she was in danger or because you knew we were trying to recover her memory?" The question had been hanging over her every interaction with the headmistress since the battle, and she knew she couldn't leave without closure.

McGonagall looked down. "I knew what you were planning to do."

"I just… don't understand why," Rose said.

"I trusted the Department," she said. "And I knew it wouldn't change anything. I've seen firsthand how knowing their prophecy does nothing but harm the subject." The headmistress looked at her, seeming concerned. "Are you angry?"

"…Not really," Rose admitted. "I was, at first, but… it's done. You're right, it wouldn't have changed anything."

"Please understand, Miss Weasley, everything I did was what I thought to be in the best interest of you, of all of you."

"I know that," she said. "Really, I do. Thank you, Professor. I should be going."

"Rose," McGonagall said as Rose was turning to go. "I don't say this lightly, but you were one of my best students. I have no doubt you will do great things."

Rose was surprised at how touched she felt. "Thank you, Professor. Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Rose." She left the office feeling better than she'd expected to feel. She really didn't feel angry about the prophecy. It was as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. It was all really over, and there was no more reason to think about it. It was so freeing she didn't know what to do.

When she reached the Entrance Hall, she found Lily and Hugo standing with Scorpius as students streamed out of the doors. She walked up to them as Hugo was saying, "I swear she said we would!"

"Who said what?" Rose asked.

"Mum said when you graduated we could go to Italy," Hugo said.

"When was this?" she asked.

"Well, like five years ago, but still, I feel like promises should be honored," he muttered.

"Hugo, you can't hold her to that, I couldn't go anyway, I have a job," Rose laughed.

"Oh, yeah. You're like an adult," he said, looking disappointed.

"You could come to France with us," Lily suggested. "You know, when James gets back." James had left after the funeral and gone who knows where with Alice, travelling to take his mind off things. No one really knew exactly where he was; Rose suspected he had gone to stay with Uncle Charlie, but she didn't know for sure. He had sent an owl a few days ago congratulating them on graduating and apologizing to Scorpius for what he'd said, so wherever he was, it seemed to be helping.

"We'll see. If I'm not grounded when my OWL results come," he told her. The train blew a warning whistle, and Rose hugged her brother.

"We'll see you on the train," she said, and Scorpius walked with her to the doors. He stopped and looked back into the castle, and she watched him as he shook his head, smiling.

"You know, when I first got here I hated this place. Everyone hated me and it was so big and intimidating… and now I'd do anything to stay."

Rose smiled and took his hand. "Together?"

"Let's go." They stepped over the threshold out onto the grounds, where Hagrid was waiting at the edge of the Black Lake with many of the other seventh years. When the whole class had arrived, he started helping them into boats. Rose and Scorpius hung back, until they were the last to get in. Hagrid seemed like he was making an effort not to cry.

"I told myself I wouldn't get emotional," he muttered. "Alright, you two, let's go." They crossed the lake in Hagrid's boat, watching the castle become smaller behind them and the long thread of carriages following them on the path nearby. She couldn't believe she was finally leaving for good. When the old groundskeeper helped them out of the boat at the banks near the train station, Rose hugged him and said, "Thanks for everything, Hagrid."

"Don't do that, now I'm really gonna cry," he said, pulling out an almost comically large handkerchief. "Goodbye, Rose."

"Bye, Hagrid." They walked along the path until they reached the train, and just before the doors, Rose turned around for a last look at the castle, its reflection shimmering on the lake, its towers reaching high above them into the clouds. She could hardly bear to say goodbye. Scorpius noticed and waited for her.

"Like McGonagall said. New beginnings," he told her, smiling.

She nodded, and smiled back at him. "Right." And, together, they boarded the train.


	26. 23 Years Later

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much again for reading these stories, it really does mean a lot to me! This is the main epilogue, but for those of you who are curious about other characters, I'm posting my notes about everyone else's futures in another 'story' called 23 Years Later that will be on my profile shortly. If you'd like to keep up with my writing, please follow me as an author! Right now I'm not planning to write any more Harry Potter but I am writing a Star Wars story called The Last Guardian if you're a Star Wars fan. Also, my FictionPress account is kellym99; I'm writing an original story there called City in Shadow that's also about magical teenagers so check it out! Thank you so much again, this has been the best experience I've had as an author and I couldn't ask for better readers. Enjoy the epilogue! -Kelly**

23 YEARS LATER

Rose had been staring at the election results for hours now, watching the votes come in, but it still didn't make it any easier. She knew that the whole room was looking at her, and she couldn't blame them; her campaign team was just as invested in this as she was, and their private back room to the Modernist election headquarters was packed with everyone from her campaign manager to regional interns. The announcer on the BBC wasn't calming her nerves either, engaging in near-incessant speculation. "Now, seeing as we called the general election for Parliament about an hour or so ago, do you think the Labour win will determine the Wizengamot majority, Lee?"

 _Please say yes_ , Rose thought intently, and Lee Jordan merely shrugged. "It's probably too early to tell at this point, Dan. Though the WWN exit polls coming in have been in favor of the Modernist-Labour coalition."

"Right, and just to interrupt you for a second, Lee, we are ready to call the Greater London area for Modernist-Labour, with all current MWs retaining their seats."

"At least you've still got a job, then, no matter what happens," Scorpius said from behind her. Rose turned around quickly to smile at her husband, though she knew he could still tell she was nervous. He was holding a glass of firewhisky as well. "I figured you might like a drink."

"If you'll drive home," Rose said gratefully, taking it from him and downing it quickly. "I don't think I've ever been this nervous."

"I know," he said. "This coverage won't help you. You could go out into the main room, you know. James and Alice are drunk, it's rather hilarious."

"They only have one region left to call," Rose said tensely. "We're practically tied right now." Scorpius seemed to sense that there was no point in reasoning with her, and sat down at her side without speaking until Killian ran up to both of them. "Are they about to call?"

"We think so," he said. Killian looked almost as much of a nervous wreck as Rose felt. "Exit polls look good, but there's still the possibility of an upset."

"The polls closed in Scotland 45 minutes or so ago, we should have the results for you in about ten minutes," the BBC announcer said, and cut to a map with colored sections. Rose couldn't look away, as much as she wanted to. After a pundit she'd never seen went over the magical communities in each region, the BBC announcer and Lee Jordan were back at the desk, talking about her and her opponent. "So the nominees for Minister have both been voted back into their districts, is that right?"

"Yes," Lee Jordan said. "It's really too soon to tell, but either way this will be a historic election, Dan. If Weasley wins, she'll be the first second-generation Minister for Magic, and Fawley would be the first Minister to not attend Hogwarts."

"Yeah, because he was too radical to go anywhere but Durmstrang," Killian muttered.

"So tell us again, for those of us uninitiated Muggles, Lee," Dan said with a smile, "who exactly are these candidates and what'll they mean for the whole of Great Britain?"

"Well, Dan, there's Rose Weasley, 40, Hogwarts graduate 2024, one of the founders of the Modernist party, has been a huge supporter of blood equality since her student days. You'll remember that she and her cousin Lucy were some of the biggest advocates for exposure in the 2020s."

"Right, yes, and that's Lucy Weasley, chair of the Modernist party."

"That's right, Dan. It's not all talk either, she's also done a lot of work with her husband Scorpius Malfoy on the Malfoy Home for Children in Wiltshire, a group home out of the Malfoy family manor for displaced Muggleborn and Squib children. Weasley would likely be good for companion governing, she's been very supportive of Parliament in the past, was ambassador to Parliament in the 2030s… Charles Fawley, on the other hand, age 50, a Durmstrang graduate class of 2015, remained completely silent on the War and on exposure. He's a hard-line Conservative, mostly purist ideology, and has been willing to work with Parliament but is a big isolationist advocate for the Wizarding community—"

"Hold on, there, Lee, we're getting word from Scotland right now," Dan said, glancing off camera. The room went completely silent and Rose couldn't breathe. "And Scotland has been called for the Modernist-Labour coalition, officially winning them the 2047 Wizengamot election and electing Rose Weasley as the—" the sound in the two rooms became deafening at that point, and Rose could no longer hear the TV. She was suddenly shaking hands and hugging people, and was soon ushered through a back door to the backstage area of the event hall. Lucy was walking onto the temporary stage to thunderous applause, grinning. The TV cameras had gone live, and she was waiting to speak until the crowd had quieted down. "Thank you, everyone! What a night! Thank you, thank you. I know you don't want to see me very long." Lucy was laughing, but she knew she was a celebrity in her own right; the Muggles watching at home, at least, thought she was something of a hero. "I'm just here to introduce the real party leader." Rose's hands started to shake and she firmly held on to her note cards, trying to stay calm. "All of you here tonight know all this, but I'll go through it anyway. A hero of the Third Wizarding War, Rose Weasley's political career began when she started the Modernist Student Association with a select group of other Hogwarts students—" Lucy paused to grin self-indulgently— "during her second year in 2019. Her first job was in the International Magical Office of Law; she then served as a member of the Modernist National Leadership Committee until 2030. She's worked as a blood status civil rights advocate with the Albus Potter Foundation, and served as Junior Magical Ambassador to Parliament from 2032 to 2037. For the last ten years, she has represented Greater London in the Lower Chamber of the Wizengamot, and has never stopped fighting for progressive government and blood equality. Please welcome my friend, the newly elected Minister for Magic, Rose Weasley!" Rose was walking onstage then, to renewed applause, and smiled at the crowd and the cameras.

"Thank you so much!" she exclaimed, trying to retain her composure. "I want to begin by congratulating Mr. Fawley and the Conservative party on a very close race." The room clapped politely, and Rose had to stop herself from smiling while imagining her rather slimy and incredibly purist fellow Wizengamot member's probable state at that moment. "And congratulations to every Modernist and Labour member of the Wizengamot that was reelected tonight!" The audience's applause was much louder this time. "And now of course I want to thank Lucy and the Modernist National Leadership Committee for the nomination. This race would also be completely impossible without my wonderful campaign manager Killian Wallace and all of my staff." She paused to let the audience applaud, knowing Killian would appreciate it from backstage though his stage fright would stop him from appearing. "I also need to thank my wonderful husband Scorpius. I love you so much, and I know I wouldn't be on this stage without you." She couldn't see Scorpius but she bet he was backstage somewhere. "And of course to my daughter Thea and my sons Leo and Al, I love you and I'm very proud to be your mum, though if you're watching this you should be in bed." She let the crowd laugh for a moment before beginning her real remarks. "I am incredibly humbled by this unparalleled opportunity to serve the magical community and to serve all of Great Britain. We enter this new term with renewed confidence that our ideals of equality and tolerance must be the light that compels us to lead every day. We must always remember the responsibility given to us by the citizens that voted for us, to protect their rights and ensure their government is just. We must work with our non-magical fellow British citizens to be certain that we are all united in this mission of tolerance and just government. I strongly believe that this term is our opportunity to work together to protect these ideals of equality and tolerance for all people, regardless of magical ability or blood status. I have never been more confident than I am tonight that the Ministry of Magic will serve all of its citizens. Thank you and good night!" She got off the stage fairly quickly, though the crowd was still roaring when she reached the edge of the curtain. Killian and Scorpius were standing there, and Scorpius kissed her as soon as she was out of the cameras' shot.

"Congratulations, Minister," he said, grinning, and Killian started pushing them onstage.

"Go back out there with Scorpius, they love you two," he said quickly, and they walked back out onto the stage, where Lucy already was, holding hands and smiling. They both hugged Lucy and before long, Killian motioned for them to come back. Waving to the crowd and the cameras, they disappeared behind the curtain again. "Your car's been brought up outside," he said. "Go home, get some rest. It'll look better if no one has pictures of you at the party in the middle of the night anyway."

"Thanks, Killian," Rose said, smiling. "I'll see you on Monday."

"Congratulations, ma'am," he said, smiling back, and opened a door behind the curtain where their car was indeed waiting outside, along with several reporters. Waving to them without answering questions, Scorpius got the keys from the valet and they started to drive out of Whitehall and back to their flat.

"I don't think I'm going to get used to this," Rose said, still slightly breathless from the whole thing.

"Yeah, I don't think you're supposed to," he said. "You're right, though, it's mad."

"I'm honestly really glad to be going home," she admitted.

"Me, too," Scorpius said. "It's already midnight anyway." They paused for a moment. "We're old, aren't we?"

"I'm the second youngest Minister in more than a century," she said, frowning at him.

"Ministers are old." She couldn't really argue with that. They pulled up in front of the flat and parked the car outside. There was still a light on in the kitchen, and they walked in to see Annie Lupin stretched out on the couch with popcorn, watching the BBC coverage.

"Congrats!" she exclaimed, running to the door to hug them. "I saw your speech, it was brilliant."

"Thanks, Annie," Rose said, smiling. "Did the boys get off to bed all right?"

"They complained the whole time, but yes, I got them to go to sleep by eleven or so," she said.

"Oh, great, only late by an hour," Scorpius muttered.

"Hugo called a little while ago to say congratulations," Annie told them. "He said service was spotty though so he'll call back tomorrow. Where is he?"

"A Runespoor expedition in Africa," Rose said. "I'm surprised he remembered. If I were surrounded by giant snakes I wouldn't be thinking about much else."

"Oh, and a letter came from Thea," she said. "I left it on the counter. I didn't expect you to be back so soon."

"It's apparently unseemly to go to the party," Scorpius said, smiling. He pulled a handful of Galleons out of his pocket and handed them to her as she was getting her coat. "Thanks, Annie. You don't have to rush out if you'd like to stay. The traffic's hell right now."

"Thanks, but I've got to get going," she said. "Law school's going to kill me, especially if I don't sleep. Good night."

"Good night," Rose said, smiling, and Annie left quickly after that. "Is there really a letter from Thea?"

"Amazing, I know. Two in one whole month," Scorpius said, rolling his eyes. "Honestly, she's a first year. She gets this independence thing from you."

"You moved out at 13," Rose grumbled, and walked over to where he was standing, holding their daughter's letter.

1-5-2047

Dear Mum and Dad,

Thanks for the chocolates on Easter! I loved them (well, what I could get of them before Danny and Brianna ate them all). Gryffindor's playing Slytherin for the Quidditch cup next week, I think it's going to stream online so watch for me! Also, I'm top of my class, except I'm really tied with this boy Andrew Goldstein but he's in Ravenclaw so I don't have classes with him. Kayla finally convinced me to join the Modernists, I know I said I don't like politics but it's kind of cool. I still want to play Quidditch though. I hope you win the election, Mum, and Dad, I hope you catch that Dark group in France. Soon, please, since I need to be able to prove Sophie Yates wrong. Oh, also, I kind of got detention. It was mostly Danny and Brianna's fault, I swear, and George… but I guess I helped. We set off Smokebombs during Slytherin Quidditch practice. Please don't be mad. Anyway, I love you and I'll try to write before the end of the year, it's just really hard to remember. Also, Professor Longbottom says hi!

Love,

Thea

"I told her not to let James's kids get her into trouble," Scorpius said, shaking his head.

"She was never going to listen, they're her favorite cousins anyway," Rose said, smiling. "Glad to see Kayla finally got to her, though."

"Yes, and definitely not just wanting to be exactly like Kayla's mums," Scorpius said, rolling his eyes. "Maybe the boys will see sense at least and stay away from politics."

"Hey! You're talking to the Minister for Magic, remember," Rose said, smiling. "I'm going to say good night to them."

"I'll wait up for you." They walked quietly up the stairs and Rose turned into the boys' room, the enchanted ceiling twinkling with starlight. The nine-year-old twins were soundly asleep in their bunk beds, Al with his arm hanging down into his brother's bunk. Rose tucked the boy back snugly into his blanket and kissed his forehead. Leo on the bottom bunk stirred quietly.

"Did you win, Mum?" he whispered.

"Yes, love, don't wake your brother," she told him. He grinned and she pushed his blond hair out of his eyes and smiled back. "Good night."

"Night, Mum," he mumbled, already half-asleep again, and Rose stopped at the doorframe, smiling again at their sleeping faces, before she eased the door shut. All was well.


End file.
